Man pleads guilty to 2003 Dorchester murder after initial conviction is overturned

By pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter for the 2003 death of Aston Dwayne Thompson, Linrose Woodbine received a sentence of 15 years, rather than risking another conviction that could have sent him to prison for the rest of his life, the Suffolk County District Attorney's office reports.

With credit for time served, Woodbine will be out of state prison in six years - and then be handed over to the feds for deportation to his native Jamaica - according to the DA's office.

In March, the Supreme Judicial Court overturned Woodbine's first-degree murder conviction in 2007 and ordered a new trial because the judge had improperly allowed testimony by a controversial Boston homicide detective.

According to the DA's office:

In pleading guilty, Woodbine admitted that he and a still-unknown second man shot Thompson multiple times during a robbery attempt in a parking lot behind the victim's apartment building. Thompson suffered gunshot wounds to the head, back, shoulder, and abdomen.

After hearing gunshots, prosecutors say, an acquaintance of the victim came from the apartment and returned fire, wounding Woodbine in the right leg and right buttock.

Police located a gun in a pool of blood and followed a blood trail to Kingston Street, where they found Woodbine. Woodbine's DNA was matched to the blood found on the gun, and that gun was matched to bullets recovered from the victim.