Man gets 40-year sentence in girlfriend’s death after fight in Houston apartment ‘had gone too far’

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — A Houston man has been sentenced to 40 years in prison for the deadly beating of his girlfriend in 2018.

Marcus D. Lockett was sentenced Monday after he was convicted of the murder of Latara Sanders.

On Aug. 6, 2018, Sanders was found dead in the 5600 block of Yale, in the apartment she and Lockett shared, authorities said. The discovery was made after family members said they had not been able to reach the 31-year-old woman or Lockett.

According to authorities, by the time Sanders’ body was found, she had already been dead for two days.

Lockett was interviewed by police days after his mother called and alerted that he had told her he and Sanders got into a fight and “it had gone too far,” according to authorities.

According to the assistant district attorney, Lockett and Sanders had been in a relationship for more than 18 years.

“Far too often we see cases like this, in which domestic violence turns into a murder,” said Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg. “In general, domestic violence escalates, and that’s why we work to get victims any help they need at the first sign of violence.”