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Georgia teenager sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to killing mother

Lilyana Rose Wagner, 16, admitted to murder after abandoning a planned middle school mass shooting, prosecutors said.

The short version

  • Sixteen-year-old Lilyana Rose Wagner was sentenced to life in prison with parole eligibility after 30 years for the November 2024 killing of her mother, Rachel Wagner.
  • Authorities reported that the teenager initially planned a mass shooting at her former middle school before making a last-minute decision to kill her mother instead.
  • Investigators said the victim had purchased the handgun used in the shooting a month prior and allowed her daughter to store it and ammunition in her bedroom.

Key facts

  • Lilyana Rose Wagner pleaded guilty to murder and aggravated assault in connection with the November 2024 shooting death of her 51-year-old mother, Rachel Wagner.[Fox News]
  • Tifton District Attorney Patrick Warren stated that the defendant will serve 30 years before becoming eligible for parole.[Fox News]
  • Law enforcement discovered the victim's body during a welfare check after the teenager crashed her mother's car.[Fox News]
  • In a handwritten confession, the teenager stated that she originally intended to carry out a shooting at her former middle school but changed her plans.[Fox News]
  • Prosecutors revealed that the victim bought the handgun used in the crime from a pawn shop approximately one month earlier and permitted her daughter to keep it in her room.[Fox News]

Sources