A Monroe woman convicted of attempted first degree murder on a Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries enforcement agent was sentenced today, March 2 in District Court in Morehouse Parish.
Amethyst Baird Rathore, 32, of Monroe, was sentenced by Judge Carl V. Sharp of the 4th Judicial District Court to 60 years in prison without the possibility for parole for attempted first degree murder of a police officer for shooting LDWF Senior Agent Tyler Wheeler. Rathore also received 40 years for obstruction of justice, 10 years for illegal possession of a stolen vehicle and 10 years for illegal possession of a stolen firearm all of which will run concurrently.
“This sentencing will hopefully give Tyler and his family some kind of closure as they continue to work on getting their lives back to normal,” said LDWF Secretary Jack Montoucet. “Tyler has had a long road to recovery from the bullet wounds he suffered and we feel that justice has been served. More than anything, though, I am glad that Tyler is back on the job doing something that he loves.”
Senior Agent Wheeler, 25, was shot four times including once in the head and once in the back by Rathore around 2 a.m. on Jan. 7 on Hwy. 165 between Sterlington and Bastrop in Morehouse Parish.
After numerous surgeries and countless hours of physical therapy, Wheeler was cleared to return to full time duty in late July.
“I would like to personally thank the investigators, prosecutors and judges for bringing justice to Tyler and his family. We are very happy that the shooter of one of our agents will most likely spend the rest of her life in prison,” said Col. Sammy Martin, head of the LDWF Enforcement Division. “Tyler and his family went through a lot after he was shot and we are beyond thankful to have him back in uniform and continuing his career as an agent.”
District Attorney Steve Tew was the lead prosecutor for the state.