Somersett pleads guilty in Madison

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) – The suspect accused of killing a Dodgeville man over the Fourth of July weekend in 2021 will be sentenced in August after striking a plea deal with prosecutors, court records show.

Jury selection in the first-degree homicide case against Christopher Somersett, Jr., was set to begin on Monday. On April 24, the day both sides were originally to meet for a jury status hearing, the defendant changed his plea to guilty and was convicted. Somersett, 28, faces a mandatory life sentence; however, court records indicate prosecutors will recommend he be allowed to petition for release after 30 years. Sentencing is set for August 7.

Somersett is one of two men convicted of killing Keshaun Davis-Williams in a Madison shooting nearly two years ago. Officers found Keshaun-Davis, 23, in the early morning hours of July 5, 2021, when they responded to reports of gunfire in the 4500 block of Verona Rd., near the Beltline interchange, the Madison Police Department reported at the time. Officers performed life-saving measures until medical teams arrived to rush him to the hospital where he died. Somersett was arrested two days later.

The Madison Police department is investigating a homicide that took place early Monday morning... — The Madison Police department is investigating a homicide that took place early Monday morning in the 4500 block of Verona Road.(NBC15)

In December, Avieon Little pleaded guilty to the lesser first-degree intentional homicide – party to a crime charge in connection with the victim’s death. At the time, Little’s sentencing date was left open, pending the conclusion of Somersett’s case.

In March, Little, 26, tried to withdraw his plea but his motion was denied. He is next set to return to a Dane Co. courtroom for a status hearing on June 5.

Keshaun-Davis’ death was the second of two homicides that occurred over the holiday weekend that year. Just a day earlier, Keairra Fields died in a shooting in the 1700 block of Onsgard Road.

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