Jul 3, 2014 1 min read

PITTSBURGH (AP) – A man convicted of voluntary manslaughter in a shooting outside a western Pennsylvania hot dog shop has been sentenced to five to 15 years in prison.

Twenty-three-year-old Isiah Smith apologized to relatives of 24-year-old Zachary Sheridan and to his own family for the August slaying outside the Original Hot Dog Shop in Pittsburgh.

Relatives of the victim asked for the maximum penalty of 10 to 20 years while Smith’s family said a lenient sentence was in order.

Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey Manning said “Justice may lie somewhere in the middle – or not.”

The defense argued that Smith acted in self-defense after an alcohol-fueled argument outside the popular eatery near the University of Pittsburgh campus. Prosecutors said he pulled a gun and shot the victim as he walked away.