St. Cloud Woman Takes Plea Deal in Fatal Teen Shooting Case; Faces Jail Time and Probation

(KNSI) – A woman connected to a double shooting in St. Cloud that left one teenager dead and another fighting for his life has reached a plea deal.

A few days after the February 2nd shooting, Olivia Williams was arrested and charged with aiding and abetting theft of a firearm, aiding and abetting first-degree robbery, and aiding an offender.

She pled guilty in Benton County District Court to one felony count of aiding an offender. She will have charges of aiding and abetting theft of a firearm and first-degree aiding and abetting aggravated robbery, both felonies, dismissed at her sentencing on July 9th. In exchange for her plea, Williams would be sentenced to one year in prison, stayed, meaning she wouldn’t spend time behind bars unless she violated the terms of her probation. Williams would spend 30 days in jail and be ordered to pay restitution, which will be set later.

According to the criminal complaint, around 3:00 that morning, police were called to an apartment in the 200 block of 2nd Street Northeast for a report of a shooting. Police arrived to find 17-year-old Layson Davis of St. Cloud dead and a 19-year-old man from St. Joseph suffering from two gunshot wounds to the chest.

Investigators determined the shooting appeared to be a robbery gone wrong after surveillance video from the apartment showed Bernard Bowens standing in the hallway with two others and flashed a wad of cash. About five minutes later, the three are seen apparently struggling over the gun. Davis is then seen running on the second floor with a gun when Bowens appears to ambush Davis as he is coming down the stairs. The two each drew their guns, and Bowens fired several rounds at Davis and ran. The other victim ran after the gunman when he was shot by someone else. The shooter, Bowens, Williams’s boyfriend, Quinton McNeal, and another man then fled the scene.

There is still an active warrant for Bowens’ arrest, and the case against McNeal is still winding its way through the courts. Investigators still haven’t identified the two unnamed suspects.

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