LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — A Las Vegas man has been sentenced to 18 years in prison after a parking lot shooting left a man dead.
The incident happened in Nov. 2021 near Grand Canyon Drive and Flamingo Road. Police said Launce Cliff was arguing with Jacob Hughey in a parking lot and the argument turned physical. That's when police said Cliff pulled out a gun and shot Hughey, who was pronounced dead at the scene.
Cliff was arrested days later. According to court records, a jury found Cliff guilty of second-degree murder and carrying a concealed firearm and last month, he was sentenced to 18 years to life in prison.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department officer Kyle Koontz and his partner responded to the scene that night and comforted Hughey as he was dying. They were honored by Resorts World and LVMPD's Good Ticket Program and reunited with Hughey's family.
"The voices heard on the [bodycam] footage and the faces and body language of the officers are the last things my son experienced in this world," Hughey's mother said in a statement. "Although I would have preferred to be there myself, I'm comforted that he was able to get such caring attention in the last moments of his life."
Koontz told Channel 13 it was nice to be honored but it takes a team to be able to serve the community.
"This isn't a single-man job. It's a team effort," Koontz said. "I don't do this job for rewards or recognition. I do it to make a difference."
