ORLANDO, Fla. – A man who police said shot and killed his girlfriend at their apartment in the Lake Nona area of Orlando in 2018 has been sentenced.
Justin Pruitt, who previously pleaded no contest to a charge of first-degree manslaughter with a firearm, was sentenced to more than 10 years in prison; however, he was given a three-year credit for time served as he has been locked up since his arrest in 2018, according to court documents.
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The 32-year-old received the sentence as a part of a plea deal, records show. He was initially charged with second-degree murder following the death of his live-in girlfriend Tiffany Linquanti.
Police said Pruitt shot the 26-year-old in July 2018 in an apartment at the Colonial Grand at Randal Lakes complex. Pruitt called 911 at the time and told dispatchers his girlfriend had shot herself, but when dispatchers attempted to get more information he hung up, according to the arrest warrant.
The victim spent eight days in a coma before she died.
Investigators said they learned Pruitt had previously threatened Linquanti with a gun prior to the shooting. Police said friends told them the couple had a volatile relationship because of Pruitt’s drinking.
After the shooting, Pruitt was arrested in Seminole County but was then transferred to the Orange County jail where he has remained since.
Victims of domestic violence can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline, available 24 hours a day, at 1-800-799-7233, or in Central Florida, the Harbor House 24-hour confidential crisis hotline at 407-886-2856.
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