A Paso Robles woman who was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter for the 2020 shooting death of her husband was sentenced to two years in county jail, the SLO District Attorney’s office announced in a press release.
Skylar Marie Marshall, 26, was sentenced Friday, May 19 to a seven-year split sentence by a San Luis Obispo County Superior Court judge — two years in county jail followed by five years of community supervision, the press release said.
“Our hearts go out to the family and friends of Alex for their loss in this senseless and completely avoidable tragedy,” District Attorney Dan Dow said in the release. “This case illustrates the devastating effects of irresponsible gun use. It is very simple, if you accept the responsibility of handling a firearm, you assume the legal and moral obligation to exercise the highest degree of care in its use.”
Marshall shot and killed her husband, Alexander Hagist, 35, on July 16, 2020 at their home in San Luis Obispo. Marshall grew up in Paso Robles, police said in the press release.
Marshall pointed a loaded semi-automatic handgun at Hagist’s forehead and pulled the trigger, thinking the firearm was unloaded, police said. That evidence was presented during a preliminary hearing on April 29, 2021.
Marshall told police that she had not checked the firearm nor the magazine prior to pulling the trigger, the release said.
Marshall had been warned by her roommate and Hagist at prior times to not point firearms at others and to treat them as loaded, testimony revealed during that April 29 hearing. Marshall had previous experience handling, loading and shooting firearms, the release said.
The San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s office initially charged Marshall with murder, which was later dismissed.
Marshall pleaded no contest to the remaining charge of involuntary manslaughter on Dec. 28, 2022. A plea of no contest is treated the same as a guilty plea, the press release said, and the court then found her guilty of involuntary manslaughter.
Judge Jacquelyn H. Duffy of the San Luis Obispo County Superior Court said at the time that she would sentence Marshall to no more than seven years, the press release said. The decision to split the sentence with five years of community supervision was made pursuant to Proposition 47, which changes certain low-level crimes from felonies to misdemeanors, the release said.
Community supervision, the release said, is “a portion of a felony sentence where the sentenced person lives in the community and is being supervised by the county probation department.” If the terms of community supervision are violated, the individual can be returned to county jail, the release said.
The maximum sentence for the involuntary manslaughter charge was 14 years.
