Woman who killed boyfriend in botched YouTube stunt gets 6 months
ADA, Minn. -- A Minnesota woman has been sentenced to 180 days in jail for fatally shooting her boyfriend in a stunt they recorded on video and planned to post on YouTube.
A judge in Norman County on Wednesday also banned Monalisa Perez from ever owning a gun again and prohibited her from profiting from the story of the fatal shooting last June at their home in Halstad. At the time of the shooting, Perez was pregnant and had a young child with Ruiz.
For the stunt, 22-year-old Pedro Ruiz held a hardcover encyclopedia against his chest and Perez, standing about a foot away, fired a pistol to see if the bullet would go through the book.
Ruiz died as a result of the gunshot.
The Star Tribune reports Perez earlier pleaded guilty to second-degree manslaughter in an agreement with prosecutors. Norman County Attorney James Brue says Perez tragically relied on Ruiz's assurances before pulling the trigger.
The victim's aunt, Claudia Ruiz, told CBS affiliate Valley News Live that the couple often played pranks and put them on their YouTube channel.
Hours before the shooting, Perez tweeted: "Me and Pedro are probably going to shoot one of the most dangerous videos ever. HIS idea not MINE."
"They were in love, they loved each other," the aunt, Claudia Ruiz, told the station. "It's just a prank gone wrong. It shouldn't have happened like this. It shouldn't have happened at all.