Man Who Shot Woman Dead When She Answered Her Door Gets Two Life Sentences

A New York man who shot a woman dead when she answered her door on New Year's Day has been given two life sentences.

Jack Doherty, 28, was sentenced on Tuesday at Superior Court, Providence, to serve two life terms and another five years for the killing of Cheryl Smith, 54.

Doherty plotted to murder Smith, from Rhode Island, with the help of Shaylyn Moran, who he met online.

He then fatally shot Smith in Pawtucket, near Providence, on New Year's Day in 2020. Smith was the mother of Moran's ex-boyfriend.

Judge Kristin Rodgers was scathing of Doherty during sentencing, adding: "It is not difficult to appreciate the severity of the crimes for which the defendant is convicted.

"A hard-working much loved, caring member of the community, completely innocent, relaxing at her home, answers her front door on New Year's Day and is gunned down," Rodgers said, according to the publication.

The Gun Violence Archive, a database that collects information from shootings that have taken place across the country, said 28 people were shot dead in Rhode Island during 2020.

There were 29 homicides recorded across Rhode Island in 2020, which when adjusted for its population had a death rate of three per 100,000 people that year.

In 2020, Rhode Island had one of the lowest homicide death rates in the country, with only Massachusetts, Idaho, Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire having lower figures, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

A jury last year rejected Doherty's claim that he was not guilty of the murder by reason of insanity.

Rodgers mentioned Doherty's mental illness on Tuesday and rejected the suggestion that he could not be rehabilitated in jail.

She said under Rhode Island law, she had to sentence Doherty to at least two consecutive life terms and called it a harsh punishment.

Rodgers did not agree that Doherty deserved the maximum penalty of two consecutive life terms in addition to 20 years.

Assistant Attorney General Stephen Dambruch described the crime as "nothing less than a cold and ruthless taking of another human life."

Moran, who was Doherty's co-defendant, was sentenced to life in prison when she pleaded guilty to the killing in 2021.

She was handed a life sentence with two additional 10-year consecutive terms for carrying a firearm without a license, as well as conspiring to commit murder.

Newsweek has contacted the Pawtucket Police Department for comment.