Innis Lee Collins, 42, was sentenced to 32 years in prison after pleading guilty to second-degree murder in the 2022 death of Namantha Noller Rice, his 19-year-old girlfriend. Rice was found dead in the stairwell of an apartment building near East 16th Avenue and Broadway on April 23, 2022. Collins entered his plea in August.
A resident found Rice in the building stairwell on April 23, 2022, prompting officers to respond and ultimately arrest Collins, according to The Denver Post. Collins lived in apartment 302 at 25 East 16th Avenue. Building staff later told investigators there had been prior noise and disturbance reports involving Collins and an unidentified female in his unit, as reported by CBS News.
Surveillance Footage Tracked Collins's Movements That Night
The Denver Post reported that surveillance footage showed Collins carrying an unconscious Rice from his apartment toward the stairwell, then leaving the building alone. He walked down the street, changed clothes and returned to the apartment. A Denver Police arrest affidavit described a blood trail leading west from the building through an alley and into a bank driveway on the 1600 block of Broadway, according to CBS News. The outlet also reported that video showed Collins shedding clothing and changing clothes shortly after moving Rice’s body. Blood splatters were found in his apartment.
Collins was Rice's boyfriend at the time of her death, and he had been arrested just two months earlier, in February 2022, on suspicion of domestic violence assault involving a woman who appeared to be Rice, 9News reported. That earlier assault case does not appear in state court records, per The Denver Post's reporting on the case.
Plea Deal Dismissed First-Degree Murder and Tampering Charges
Collins pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in August under a deal that dismissed first-degree murder charges and counts of tampering with a body and destroying physical evidence, according to The Denver Post. Second-degree murder carries a sentence of 16 to 48 years in prison under Colorado law; Collins received 32 years. The charge is a Class 2 felony and also carries mandatory parole and fines of up to $1 million, according to Colorado Legal Defense Group. A first-degree murder conviction can result in life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
Rice's Death Came Amid a Record Year for Domestic Violence Deaths
The Colorado Attorney General’s Office reported that domestic-violence fatalities in Colorado reached a record 94 in 2022, including 39 victims killed by current or former intimate partners. Firearms accounted for the vast majority of the deaths statewide that year, according to the Attorney General’s Office.
Who was included in the statewide count
The Attorney General’s Office also counted 22 collateral victims, including six children and two peace officers. The report distinguished those deaths from the 39 victims killed by current or former intimate partners.
Denver domestic-violence filings rose 12.5% in 2024, according to Denver7. The Denver District Attorney’s Office split its former family-violence unit and created a specialized Domestic Violence Unit with dedicated staff. Denver7 reported that the unit handles felony cases involving an offender and victim who have had an intimate relationship.
