Boyfriend gets prison after fatally shooting girlfriend’s mother, Bradenton police say

A man has been sentenced to life in prison after shooting and killing his girlfriend’s mother.

Albert Wilcox, 44, was sentenced Wednesday after he was convicted of the 2022 murder of Sherline White, prosecutors with the State Attorney’s Office announced.

On Feb. 26, 2022, someone called 911 just before 9:30 p.m. to report that Wilcox pointed a gun at White, the Bradenton Herald previously reported. Police said he had also fired the gun in the air during the altercation.

When the call abruptly ended, 911 operators could not reach the caller again, according to an arrest report.

Minutes later, police officers responded to the 200 block of 11th Ave. E in Bradenton, where they found White dead in her car, the Herald reported.

During the investigation, detectives determined that Wilcox got into an argument with White and shot her five times while she sat in the driver’s seat of her car, killing her “instantly,” prosecutors said.

Deputies with the Glades County Sheriff’s Office arrested Wilcox the next day, according to a 2022 news release. Investigators say Wilcox admitted to the shooting at the time.

“This was a senseless crime that should not have happened and now Ms. White’s family must bear the pain of her loss,” said Assistant State Attorney Suzanne O’Donnell, the lead prosecutor in the case. “Hopefully this life sentence will provide some comfort to them.”

A Manatee County jury convicted Wilcox of second-degree murder. He will spend life in prison without the possibility of parole, according to a news release.

This story was originally published February 14, 2025 at 5:50 AM.