A Decatur man who killed his cousin and dumped his body on the side of Interstate 20, widening a family rift in what prosecutors called a "Shakespearean tragedy," entered a guilty plea Monday to the reduced charge of voluntary manslaughter in Rockdale County Superior Court.

Matthew Lanier Mangrum, 29, was sentenced by Superior Court Judge Sidney Nation to 20 years plus five years probation consecutive, with credit for time served, for voluntary manslaughter and false statements to law enforcement for the 2008 killing of his cousin, Jason Durran Ramey, 32, of Loganville.

Mangrum originally faced charges of malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault felony, false statement felony, and concealing a death felony. However the family agreed to reduced charges in exchange for a guilty plea and a chance at bringing closure to the four-year old case.

Family members of both Mangrum and Ramey gave victim impact statements, including Mangrum's mother, uncle, and brother and Ramey's mother, father, and sister.

When asked by the judge, Ramey's younger sister, Dana, said she believed the cause of the killing came from jealousy.

"I believe that the root of it is a deep seated jealousy and envy. I believe it can lead to murder if it's not taken care of in your heart," she said.

Assistant District Attorney Dabney Kentner described the situation as a "Shakespearean tragedy, so to speak. It's ripped these families apart."

Even Mangrum pleaded with the family members in the court room, "There's been a lot of stuff over the years... I would like today to be the end of it. I would like y'all to move on."

He declined to elaborate on the disagreement between his cousin and himself that led to the shooting but said, "If I had a chance to switch places with Jason, I would. I loved Jason as much as anyone in this courtroom."

Judge Sidney Nation said to the court before his ruling, "Fathers and mothers do not control what their children do... All you can do is hope they make the right decisions."

"For one family to say to another, that's your fault. Or that family to say to another, that's your fault - no. That's (the children's own) fault. They made the decision. You didn't make the decision. You weren't in the car that night."

He continued, asking rhetorically, "How do you define mercy in a situation like this?"

The 20 years that the state was recommending was about half of what Mangrum could have faced, had he been found guilty of felony murder, Nation said. "I don't think it is overly zealous. I don't think it's overly lenient."

According to Kentner, Mangrum was driving his girlfriend's champagne-colored Chevy Tahoe the night of September 25, 2008 when he went to meet Ramey at the Krystals and Waffle House at the Evans Mill exit of I-20.

Security camera footage captured images of Ramey parking his car at Krystals and Ramey getting into a Chevy Tahoe driven by a large figured person around 9:07 p.m. One of the last people Ramey called that night said that Ramey had rescheduled their meeting because he was going to meet with his cousin instead.

About 15 minutes later, Troopers found Ramey's body in the emergency lane on the west side of I-20 between the Sigman Road and Turner Hill Road exits. Ramey had been shot four times, with bullets through the arm, neck, back and grazing his neck.

The champagne-colored Tahoe was reported missing after that weekend, after Mangrum's girlfriend came back into town from a trip. The Tahoe was found a day later burned near the DeKalb County landfill. DNA taken off of three cigarette butts near the burned car was traced back to Mangrum.

At first, Mangrum told deputies he had not seen the victim for a month before his death. Then he said another vehicle had come alongside and a man had shot Ramey and threatened to kill Mangrum if he told authorities. 

However, investigator Dusty Brown, who was then with the DA's office, and Rockdale County Sheriff's Office investigator Tom Brewer concluded Mangrum's story was not possible.

Mangrum admitted to burning the car and faced arson charges in DeKalb County.