Boyfriend arraigned for fatal shooting of girlfriend

A 20-year-old Springfield Gardens man has been arraigned on charges of fatally shooting his teenage girlfriend - who was trying to end their relationship - during a dispute inside her Jackson Heights residence last month.
Shane Tomlinson, 20, of 178-15 Selover Road in Springfield Gardens, was arraigned before Queens Criminal Court Judge Suzanne Melendez on a criminal complaint, charging him with second-degree murder, second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and tampering with physical evidence.
Tomlinson, who faces up to 25 years to life in prison if convicted, was remanded without bail and ordered to return to court on May 16.
“This is a terribly sad and tragic case in which the defendant is accused of resorting to mindless violence to end the life and dreams of a young and talented college co-ed,” said District Attorney Richard A. Brown. “In the process, the defendant also shattered the hopes of her family. The charges against the defendant will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”
Brown said that, according to the criminal complaint, at 6:10 p.m. on Sunday, April 15, the defendant used a .45 caliber pistol to fatally shoot Chameka Miller in the left cheek while inside the stairwell of her residence at 33-24 77th Street in Jackson Heights.
Shortly thereafter, the defendant is alleged to have disposed of the illegal handgun in a garbage can on Queens Boulevard. The victim purportedly had tried to break up with the defendant prior to the incident.
Brown said that Tomlinson was arrested Tuesday, May 1 after detectives took him into custody in Brooklyn, where he was staying with a friend.