Woman convicted of shooting her friend after a fight while riding her bike
A Third Circuit Court judge on Wednesday sentenced a woman to 15 years to life in prison in connection with the 2021 shooting of her friend.
Patrice Ann Winward, 33, was convicted of murder in May. Eight other charges – including possession of a dangerous weapon by a disabled person, obstruction of justice and firing a firearm – were dropped.
According to the charges, on Aug. 17, 2021, police witnesses said Winward and her friend Nicole Carter, 31, rode bicycles while they engaged in a “heated verbal argument” and shouted obscenities at each other. The witnesses said Carter tried to escape Winward. They heard several shots and the argument died down.
When police officers arrived at 885 W. South Temple at approximately 3:30 am, they found Winward performing CPR on Carter, who had been shot in the upper body. Medical staff pronounced Carter dead and Winward left the scene claiming she had a medical emergency at home.
The charges say Winward later told police she argued with Carter and fired multiple shots “to stop her from walking.” She also admitted to lying about why she left the scene of the shooting and that she gave the gun to a child with instructions to hide it in a stormwater drain. The gun was later recovered from there.
“MS. Winward not only attempted to evade responsibility for this crime by giving her gun to someone else to hide, but also by fleeing the scene shortly after police arrived,” said Salt Lake District Attorney Sim Gill County, in a statement Wednesday.
“The sentence imposed helps hold Ms. Winward accountable for the premeditated criminal act of violence that claimed Ms. Carter’s life,” Gill continued. “We mourn the loss of Mrs. Carter and hope that the resolution of this case will help her loved ones begin healing.”
