ALBERTVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) – After entering a “blind” guilty plea, an Albertville woman has been sentenced to 20 years for the death of a Douglas woman.

Leslie K. Sims, 41, was charged with intentional murder in November 2021 after confessing to killing 32-year-old Jana Miller Chatman during a police interview.

Police were investigating Chatman’s death after her body was found lying in a ditch next to a crashed vehicle in Albertville on November 5, 2021. Reportedly, investigators found several shell casings at the scene.

Court documents show that Sims had been indicted by a Marshall County Grand Jury on February 22, 2022. Following the alleged confession, she was taken to Albertville City Jail and held on a $1 million bond.

Sims had initially pleaded not guilty at her arraignment hearing in May of 2022. However, in February 2023, she entered a “blind” guilty plea, or a guilty plea deal without a set sentence, for the lesser charge of manslaughter.

According to court documents, Sims was sentenced by Marshall County Circuit Court Judge Christopher F. Abel to 20 years in state prison.