More than a year after a woman was found shot to death in a Lawson residence, the man originally accused of first-degree murder has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge and has been ordered to serve 25 years in state prison.Lawson resident Lawrence P. Neary IV, 51, recently entered a guilty plea in Ray County Circuit Court to seconddegree murder, an amended class A felony accusing him of knowingly causing the death of the victim by shooting her on April 27, 2024.Eighth Judicial Circuit Court Judge Kevin Walden accepted the plea after Neary waived a formal reading of the amended information and acknowledged in court he understood the charge, range of punishment and rights he was giving up by pleading guilty.According to the judgment, prosecutors detailed the terms of the plea agreement in open court and Walden found the plea to be voluntary and supported by a factual basis. The court then formally found Neary guilty beyond a reasona...