Daniel Cummings pleads guilty to manslaughter

The original capital murder charges against Daniel Cummings were reduced to manslaughter by culpable negligence shortly after 9 a.m. today because of a motion by the prosecutor, according to The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal blog.

Cummings pleaded guilty to manslaughter and Daily Mississippian photographer Ryan Moore confirmed that Cummings has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for manslaughter.

Cummings denied continuance

The murder trial of Daniel Cummings will continue as planned after Cumming's lawyer Steve Farese Sr. was denied a continuance by Lafayette County Circuit Judge Henry Lackey. Farese asked for the continuance in order to review new discovery materials and negotiate with the prosecution.

Cummings, a former University of Mississippi student from Germantown, Tenn., is charged with the murder of University Police Department officer Robert Langley, who died from head injuries after allegedly being thrown from Cummings' vehicle during a routine traffic stop from which Cummings tried to flee. Cummings was denied bond last November.

Cummings has pleaded not guilty to the capital murder charge. The prosecution is not seeking the death penalty at the request of Langley's family.