A Bloomington man was sentenced to 36 years on Friday following his conviction of three counts in connection to the death of an IU senior Avery McMillan.
According to Indiana Public Media, Eric Montgomery will serve 15 years for rape when the victim is mentally disabled or deficient, 180 days for providing alcohol to a minor and an additional two year for obstruction of justice. A judge sentenced Montgomery to an additional 19 years as a consecutive offender for a prior burglary conviction.
McMillan died of a fentanyl overdose at Montgomery’s home on Aug. 17, 2022, at the age of 20 years old. Montgomery said the two had met earlier that night on campus and that he took her to his house.
[Related: Jury finds Eric Montgomery guilty of three crimes in connection to death of Avery McMillan]
The Indiana Daily Student reported that McMillan and her roommate were returning from a party the night of Aug. 17, and that McMillan exited a car without her keys or phone. Nearby surveillance footage of McMillan's apartment complex showed that she was intoxicated in a parking garage near her apartment and was picked up by Montgomery around 5 a.m.
Monroe Country Sherrif Brad Swain said Montgomery told authorities he and McMillan had sex in the parking garage and at his parent’s house and that he had provided McMillan alcohol and marijuana.
Montgomery also has a pending case for the rape of an Ellettsville woman who accused him of sexual assault in August of 2021. A jury trial is set for this case and Montgomery has not been convicted yet.
