Austin man sentenced to supervised probation, time in the sentence to service program on felony assault charge in Mower County District Court

An Austin man who fired several shots at a vehicle in northwest Austin in December of 2020 has been sentenced to supervised probation and time in the sentence to service program in Mower County District Court.  

26-year old Eric Lamar Starnes Jr. was sentenced Thursday to seven years and six months of supervised probation, plus 80 hours in the sentence to service program for a felony charge of 2nd degree assault with a dangerous weapon.  Starnes was taken into custody after Austin Police received a report of gunfire in the 900 block of 3rd Avenue NW on the evening of December 13th, 2020.  Court documents state that Starnes was at a party and when a vehicle pulled up, he fired several shots at it.

Starnes was granted a stay of imposition on the charge by Judge Natalie Martinez where the defendant pleads guilty to a felony-level offense.  If he or she complies with the terms of their probation, the conviction will be deemed a misdemeanor.  Starnes must adhere to 15 different conditions while on probation, and he was convicted on the charge after pleading guilty on December 27th, 2022.  A felony charge for attempted 2nd degree murder, with intent, not premeditated in the case against Starnes was dismissed with his guilty plea.