Anchorage man sentenced to 18 years in caught-on-camera homicide case

Tommy Hunter Higgs III at his arraignment in 2016. Three years later he pleaded guilty to...
Tommy Hunter Higgs III at his arraignment in 2016. Three years later he pleaded guilty to manslaughter and other crimes surrounding the killing of Paula Zorawski. (KTUU)
Published: Jan. 25, 2019 at 11:33 AM AKST
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In an Anchorage courtroom Thursday, a judge sentenced a now-20-year-old Tommy Hunter Higgs III, for

- the killing of Paula Zorawski.

Higgs will spend 18 years in prison for the homicide, which took place on September 22, 2016 after an attempted armed robbery went bad, and an Anchorage mother was shot and killed. The entirety of the conflict was caught on camera and presented as evidence to the jury.

Judge Wolverton sentenced Higgs to serve nine years for manslaughter, five years for the robbery conviction, 30 months for the tampering conviction, and 18 months for the attempted burglary conviction. While prosecutors say he didn't pull the trigger, his involvement made him guilty of manslaughter. Higgs pleaded guilty to the charges.

On that day in 2016, Higgs, together with co-defendants Michael Fitzgerald, Yurel Nichols, Savon Berry, and Alonzo Steward, approached a home on Alora Loop in Anchorage with the intent to rob a man of marijuana and money. Instead, charging documents said, that man's mother answered the door.

The incident was captured on home security surveillance cameras. According to prosecutors, four of the five individuals lined up along the side of the house while Fitzgerald knocked on the door. After Paula Zorawski opened the door and took a step outside, Nichols allegedly shot Zorawski in the neck, an injury which eventually killed her.

The group ran back to their vehicle, where prosecutors say Higgs instructed those present to delete text messages between each other, which was where the evidence tampering charge was founded.

Fitzgerald said Higgs wanted to “rip” the house and asked Fitzgerald to set up a drug transaction to give them a pretense for Higgs and his three friends to enter the home, according to the report.

Police arrested Higgs in Chugiak. According to police, on the way to the patrol car, Higgs told officers that “something crazy” had gone on the previous night.

On the ride to the station, Higgs volunteered a story about the preceding night’s events. Higgs said he and Fitzgerald went to buy marijuana from the victim’s son, and heard a gunshot followed by four men running away, police say.

At the sentencing hearing, Judge Wolverton noted that he watched the surveillance video of the shooting and that it has since "replayed on a continuous loop in his mind," a statement from the Department of Law said. The judge said community condemnation of Higgs’ actions for drugs and money justifies the imposition of 18 years to serve.

According to police, when Higgs was arrested, they read him his rights, and he agreed to talk. However, after detectives confronted him about the conflicting security camera footage and witness statements, police said Higgs no longer wished to talk.

As for Nichols, the alleged triggerman in the incident, his next court appearance, a pre-trial conference, is scheduled for Feb. 6, 2019, according to online court records.

As for the other co-defendants, Savon Berry has been sentenced to nine years for manslaughter and Michael Fitzgerald to nine years for first-degree robbery.

Alonzo Steward is awaiting sentencing for Second-degree murder. That hearing is currently scheduled for Feb. 22.