EHT man pleads guilty to killing his children's mother

An Egg Harbor Township man pleaded guilty Friday to using a hammer to kill his children’s mother in the bed the couple shared.
Lashaun Smith, 37, faces 40 years in prison and would have to serve at least 85 percent under the No Early Release Act, Atlantic County Prosecutor Damon Tyner announced.
It is the same deal Smith rejected in November, opting then to go to trial, which had been set for Jan. 22.
Smith said he struck Sarah Phillips, 28, in the head with a hammer four times while she slept Nov. 3, 2017.

EHT man's confession in girlfriend's killing played at court hearing

“I love you and I’m sorry,” an Egg Harbor Township man told the mother of his children before fatally beating her with a hammer in their bed, according to a statement he gave detectives hours after the killing.... Read more...

In a confession that was ruled admissible at trial, Smith told detectives he first told her, “I love you and I’m sorry.”
In a 911 call, Smith told a dispatcher that both he and Phillips were bleeding and that he had caused it Smith cut himself several times with a razor after the fatal attack.
The couple’s four children were asleep in the Zion Road home at the time.
Sentencing is set for Feb. 22.