Bedford woman convicted of manslaughter to spend four years in prison

BEDFORD, Va. (WDBJ) - After being found guilty of manslaughter in February, a Bedford woman will spend four years behind bars.

In October 2020, Bedford police responded to a home on Salem Turnpike, where they found George Lamont Turner stabbed. He was taken to Bedford Memorial, where he died.

Laurie Lynn Coleman, his girlfriend, was charged with murder in connection to the incident. A jury found her guilty of a lesser charger, manslaughter, in February. They recommended a four-year active prison sentence then.

After hearing from attorneys Friday, Judge James Updike, Jr. handed down that recommendation to Coleman, who immediately went with police after her hearing.

“I’m sorry for what happened,” she told the court just before the end of her hearing.

Turner’s mother spoke to WDBJ7 briefly after, saying, “my son is gone.”

Copyright 2022 WDBJ. All rights reserved.