Daniel C. Whitley prepares to leave the courtroom Monday after pleading guilty to murder and a firearm specification for the May 2025 shooting death of James E. Powell in East Liverpool. Sentencing is set for 11:30 a.m. Aug. 10 in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court. (Photo by Mary Ann Greier)

LISBON — Daniel C. Whitley admitted to shooting James E. Powell to death in East Liverpool in 2025, entering a guilty plea Monday to murder and a firearm specification.

The 34-year-old whose last known address was Wilbert Avenue, East Liverpool will face sentencing at 11:30 a.m. Aug. 10 in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court before Judge Megan Bickerton.

County Assistant Prosecutor Steve Yacovone said he’ll be recommending a sentence of life in prison with the possibility of parole after 15 years, plus a mandatory additional three years for the firearm specification, bringing the grand total to 18 years before Whitley will be eligible for parole consideration.

Whitley appeared for the scheduled plea hearing in the custody of a deputy sheriff and was accompanied by his defense attorney, Thomas Will. The prosecution was represented by Yacovone and county Assistant Prosecutor Jennifer Bonish. Family for both the defendant and the victim were present for the plea.

The two sides had been negotiating and came to an agreement recently, canceling the jury trial that was previously scheduled to begin today.

As part of the plea agreement, charges of aggravated murder, tampering with evidence and another firearm specificaton will be dismissed, Yacovone said.

Whitley was taken into custody the night of the shooting on May 15, 2025 in East Liverpool after being found hiding under the porch of a residence, remaining in jail since then under a $1 million cash or surety bond.

The victim, Powell, was 58 years old at the time of his death, found with one gunshot wound to the chest after police were called at 6:25 p.m. to a shooting at the Woodland Hills apartments at Eutaw and Montrose streets.

The suspect had allegedly fled in a vehicle and as officers were trying to locate the suspect, they received a tip that he was behind a house on Avondale Street. He was located hiding under the porch and taken into custody without incident at 9:48 p.m. that night.

During a preliminary hearing in county Municipal Court, where the case was originally filed, testimony from two East Liverpool police officers detailed Whitley’s alleged toxic relationship with the victim, about video evidence of him allegedly saying the victim’s girlfriend, who had children with Whitley, was going to watch the victim die and about gun and bullet evidence.

The charges of aggravated murder and murder were both unclassified felonies, with the aggravated murder carrying a possible maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. Each of the firearm specifications carried mandatory three-year prison terms. The tampering with evidence charge was a third-degree felony which carried a possible sentence of up to 36 months in prison.

Bickerton reviewed the plea and possible penalties with Whitley, explaining to him the rights he was giving up by entering a plea. He indicated he understood and said “guilty” when asked for his plea.

She also noted that murder is a qualifying offense for a mandatory designation of Whitley as a violent offender, requiring him to register with the violent offender registry after he’s released from prison. The designation will take place during the sentencing hearing.