Robert Fails Jr., 21, pled guilty to manslaughter in connection with the shooting of Erick Huntington last year.

Fails was originally charged with murdering Huntington. His charge was reduced in exchange for a guilty plea on Tuesday. Fails was sentenced to 20 years for manslaughter.

District Attorney Ed Greene said he was pleased with the sentence.

“After we struck the jury, the defense attorney offered a 20-year sentence,” Greene said. “We thought that was a reasonable matter.”

Greene said the family agreed with the sentence.

Fails shot the 20-year-old Huntington outside the Tornado Club on Alabama Avenue on Nov. 7, 2003.

The case is the second death resulting from gunshots near the club. The first case resulted in a 25-year sentence.

Greene said the two cases together send a message to those who might consider using violence to solve disagreements.

“We’re sending a message that guns (and) firearms will get you the penitentiary,” Greene said.

Witnesses indicated that Fails and Huntingdon argued inside the club. When both parties left, the argument continued and Fails shot Huntington in the torso.

Huntington was transported to Vaughan Regional Medical Center where he died in surgery.

Fails, of Hidden Acres, turned himself in on Nov. 10, and was held in the Dallas County Jail on a $50,000 bond until the trial.

The murder, the 10th of 2003, sparked a debate among city officials. Police Chief Robert Green said that the call was one of many originating at the club, which is less than a block from police headquarters, and suggested the club’s liquor license be revoked.

The owner, Clyde Richardson, stated the shooting happened outside his club, on the corner and he couldn’t be held accountable.

Ten murders have been committed this year as well. The 10th murder occurred at a car was at the intersection of Jeff Davis Avenue and Church Street, when Morris Edward Hatcher was shot in the head and killed.

His car, a Chevy Tahoe, was later found in College Park, Ga.