Amy Skelton’s daughter described protecting her young son during the 2023 attack before Rashawn Betts received his sentence.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The daughter of Amy Skelton told a Jefferson County court Friday about the impossible choice she faced during the 2023 attack that killed her mother, moments before Rashawn Betts was sentenced to life in prison.
The sentencing gave Skelton’s family an opportunity to describe the consequences of the violence inside her Okolona apartment nearly three years earlier. Betts, 38, pleaded guilty in June to murder and several other charges. He received a life sentence and will not be eligible for parole for at least 25 years.
Skelton, 44, died after the Nov. 8, 2023, attack at an apartment on Greenbridge Way. Police and court records said Betts fired at the apartment door to defeat the lock and force his way inside. Authorities said he struck Skelton with a handgun before stabbing her. Betts and Skelton had previously been in a relationship.
Several relatives were in the apartment during the attack, including Skelton’s daughter and her grandson, who was 4 years old. During Friday’s hearing, Skelton’s daughter described trying to defend her mother while also attempting to move her child away from the danger.
She told the court that her son was screaming during the attack and that she was forced to decide whether to remain with her mother or protect her child. The daughter also said Betts had been part of the family’s life for years and that she had once viewed him as a father figure.
Her account added a personal dimension to a case that had moved through Jefferson County’s court system since late 2023. The attack was not witnessed only by adults responding afterward; family members were present as it happened, leaving them to describe its effects directly at sentencing.
Police began searching for Betts after Skelton’s death. He turned himself in to Louisville police less than two weeks later. During an early court appearance, a not guilty plea was entered on charges that included murder, burglary, assault and wanton endangerment, and a judge set his bond at $1 million.
The case did not proceed to a jury trial. Betts pleaded guilty in June 2026 to murder, burglary, assault, wanton endangerment, failure to render aid and reckless driving. The pleas established his criminal responsibility for the offenses and moved the case toward Friday’s sentencing hearing.
The judge imposed a life term with no possibility of parole for at least 25 years. Parole eligibility after that period does not mean Betts will automatically be released; it means he may become eligible to be considered under the applicable parole process.
Friday’s proceeding closed the sentencing phase of the prosecution while leaving Skelton’s family with the effects they described in court. Betts will remain incarcerated under the life sentence and cannot be considered for parole until he has served at least 25 years.
Author note: Last updated Aug. 9, 2026.