A south Charlotte parking-lot dispute that turned deadly in December 2024 has ended with a multi-decade prison sentence for the woman who pulled the trigger. Prosecutors say 45-year-old Ebonee Rahman shot and killed Lashunda Shmicka McLendon after a confrontation outside an apartment complex on Archdale Drive, a case that wound through the courts for more than a year before ending in a guilty plea.
According to Charlotte Alerts News, Rahman pleaded guilty in June 2026 to second-degree murder in connection with the December 2024 killing. The outlet reports that a judge sentenced her to between 292 and 363 months in prison, a term that effectively keeps her behind bars for decades.
Police: Confrontation Turned Fatal
A news release from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department states that officers were called to an assault-with-a-deadly-weapon incident in the 300 block of Archdale Drive on December 13, 2024. When they arrived, they found McLendon suffering from a gunshot wound. Medic crews pronounced her dead at the scene.
The CMPD release identifies Ebonee Makeesa Rahman as the person officers transported for questioning. After that interview, police charged her with murder and possession of a firearm by a felon. At the time, investigators described the homicide case as active and ongoing.
Surveillance and Affidavit Outline the Sequence
Court records and security footage described by local reporters filled in how the confrontation spiraled. Earlier that day, the two women argued in the area. Then, according to an arrest affidavit, Rahman walked away, met up with an unidentified man, took a handgun from his jacket, returned to the scene and shot McLendon.
WSOC-TV reviewed the affidavit and reported that investigators relied on those documents and surveillance clips to build out the timeline and track the movements leading up to the fatal shot.
Family Seeks Answers
For McLendon’s family, the guilty plea is not the end of the story. They have publicly questioned why the man described in the affidavit as handing over the gun has not also been charged, saying they believe more than one person bears responsibility.
“There’s no closure because, if it was just her there would be closure,” McLendon’s daughter, Latara Rushing, told WSOC-TV. Relatives have shared details about McLendon’s funeral and memorial in local coverage while continuing to push for additional answers from investigators.
What the Sentence Means Under North Carolina Law
Under North Carolina’s structured-sentencing system, second-degree murder is generally treated as a Class B1 felony. The punishment chart in the North Carolina General Statutes, at G.S. 15A-1340.17, shows presumptive ranges for Class B1 offenses that include a 292 to 365 month band for defendants with higher prior-record levels.
That range lines up with the 292 to 363 month sentence reported by Charlotte Alerts News, suggesting Rahman’s punishment falls squarely within the multi-decade terms authorized by state law for serious violent crimes.
What We Could Confirm
For this story, we verified the basic timeline using the CMPD homicide update and contemporaneous television coverage of the December 13, 2024 killing and subsequent arrest, as well as the June 15, 2026 report on Charlotte Alerts News describing the guilty plea and 292 to 363 month sentence.
As of publication, we have not located a corresponding press release or sentencing judgment on the Mecklenburg County District Attorney’s website. If the DA’s office or official court records later publish the formal plea agreement or judgment, we will update this article to reflect those documents.
