MOUNT HOLLY, N.J. – Burlington County Prosecutor Scott Coffina announced that a Willingboro woman was sentenced today to 24 years in New Jersey state prison for fatally beating her husband with a fire extinguisher inside their township residence early last year.
Under the state’s No Early Release Act, Laciana Tinsley, 44, must serve 85 percent of the sentence before becoming eligible for parole. The length of the sentence, handed down by the Hon. Philip E. Haines, J.S.C., is the result of an agreement between the defendant and the Prosecutor’s Office. Tinsley pled guilty to Aggravated Manslaughter in April for the death of her husband, Douglas Tinsley, 74.
“This was a tragic case,” Prosecutor Coffina said. “There is no justification for the brutal killing of Mr. Tinsley. We are gratified that justice has been served, and our thoughts continue to be with the victim’s family.”
The investigation revealed that on January 30, 2017, Tinsley struck her husband in the head multiple times with a fire extinguisher in their home in the first block of Hancock Lane. Douglas Tinsley was pronounced dead at the scene.
An autopsy performed by Burlington County Medical Examiner Dr. Ian Hood determined the cause of death was blunt head trauma as a result of being bludgeoned with a fire extinguisher.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant Prosecutor Bob VanGilst, supervisor of the BCPO Major Crimes Unit, Violent Crimes Section. The investigation was conducted by the Willingboro Township Police Department and the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office. The lead investigators were BCPO Detective Nicholas Villano and Willingboro Police Detective Ed Walker.