Texas Girl Was Killed By Bullet From Outside While Getting Snack at Home

After being found guilty of killing a 9-year-old girl whose home was unintentionally targeted in a gunshot, a 22-year-old Texas man will serve nearly five decades in jail.

Davonte Benton was given a 45-year jail term by a Dallas County jury on Nov. 14, for the shooting death of Brandoniya Bennett, 9, who was struck by a stray bullet inside of her townhouse on Aug. 14, 2019, said reports.

He was found guilty of murder on Nov. 10.

District Attorney John Creuzot said, "The murder of this child remains a senseless and unimaginable tragedy," in a statement.

Shots were fired in the Roseland Townhomes on Munger Avenue in Old East Dallas as the young girl, who was getting her nails done for her first day of fourth grade, was returning to the couch after grabbing a snack, said reports.

Benton was at the complex with amateur rapper Tyrese Simmons, 19, who was in a social media feud with a rival and allegedly fired his gun into the wrong apartment, People reported.

Simmons allegedly felt insulted by something about him his rival had included in his lyrics, police said at the time. It got to the point where the group believed that the issue could only be solved by fighting.

Benton "was part of a group involved in a fight next door" on the day of the fatal shooting, Creuzot said. "The fight broke up but he and another man ran around to the back and fired several gunshots into the wrong unit. One of those bullets struck Brandoniya in the head, killing her almost instantly."

She was rushed to the Baylor University Medical Center where she died.

Benton was arrested on Sept. 5, 2019, on a capital murder charge.

He was charged with capital murder. He pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial.

Meanwhile, Brandoniya's family is still having a hard time comprehending their devastating loss.

On the day of the shooting, Tanya Elder, the victim's grandmother, heard the shots and ran to her daughter's apartment. "I looked down at the floor where my daughter sat holding her baby girl, her only baby girl, in a puddle of blood, because they stole her life," she told WFAA.

A GoFundMe page was set up to help the family with funeral expenses.