Hampton Pleads Guilty

A Zanesville man accused of a September murder enters a change of plea in court.

22-year-old Joey Hampton was in Muskingum County Common Pleas Court, Friday morning, where he entered a plea of guilty to one count of murder with a firearm specification.

Zanesville Police said that Hampton shot 21-year-old Dante Wolford at the Dairy Mart on Pine Street in September of 2011.

He was arrested without incident by US Marhsal’s a month later in Florida.

Assistant Prosecutor Ron Welch recommended that Hampton be sentenced to 18 years to life in prison and ordered to pay restitution of more than $7,000.

Judge Kelly Cottrill accepted the plea and ordered a pre-sentence investigation.