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Man Sentenced To Life In 'Prom-Night Murder'

State Had Asked For Death Penalty In Slaying Of 18-Year-Old

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A man convicted of killing an 18-year-old headed for his senior prom was sentenced Thursday to life in prison without parole.

Steve Anderson, 45, was convicted of first-degree murder last month in the April 2008 shooting death of Jerome Dawson, hours before he was to attend to the Englewood High School prom.

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Prosecutors were seeking the death penalty.

Anderson had dated Dawson's mother and she had taken out a restraining order against him.

When Anderson was stopped by police minutes after the shooting, officers said they found a 9 mm handgun in his back pocket, extra ammunition in his other pockets and he told told them, "I'm the one you're looking for."