Michigan man who met teen on app, pushed her out of car, and shot her is sentenced

MACOMB COUNTY, Mich. (TCD) — A 22-year-old man was sentenced after recently pleading no contest to the 2022 shooting death of a teen mother.

The Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office announced that a judge sentenced Nathaniel Taylor on May 15 to 17 to 50 years for the second-degree murder of 17-year-old Taya Land, as well as two years for felony firearm.

According to prosecutors, on Friday, Oct. 14, 2022, Taylor and Land got into a dispute, and Taylor “pushed Land out of his vehicle” on an interstate before he “shot her three times in the head with a 9 mm firearm.” He left the woman’s body on the side of the road, MLive.com reports.

Taylor and Land allegedly met on an online app. Investigators obtained phone evidence revealing that Taylor stopped on the highway for several minutes before driving away, The Detroit News reports.

Land reportedly leaves behind a 1-year-old child.

Macomb County Prosecutor Peter Lucido said, “This sentence ensures the defendant is held accountable for this senseless loss of life. I hope this will bring some closure to the family, who have suffered a great tragedy.”

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