• Nicole “Nico” Cunigan Jr. was sentenced to 39 years to life in prison for the deaths of Precious Taste and Deante Johnson, according to the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office.
What was he convicted of?
• A jury found Cunigan guilty of four counts of murder, two counts of felonious assault and one count each of involuntary manslaughter, domestic violence, tampering with evidence and unauthorized use of a vehicle.
• The unauthorized use of a motor vehicle conviction is first-degree misdemeanor.
Credit: Montgomery County Jail
Credit: Montgomery County Jail
What was he accused of?
• Cunigan is accused of shooting and killing Taste and Johnson on May 22, 2024.
• Around 6:20 a.m., Dayton police responded to a reported shooting in the 1400 block of Shaftesbury Road.
• Officers arrived to find Taste, who was approximately 14-15 weeks pregnant, and Johnson dead inside the home, according to the prosecutor’s office. Johnson was related to another resident.
• Taste’s 3-year-old twin daughters, whom she shared with Cunigan, were home at the time of the shooting, Dayton police said.
• Investigators determined Taste and Cunigan got into an argument about her vehicle and Taste told him she didn’t want to be with him anymore.
• Cunigan allegedly said he would get the keys to Taste’s vehicle and asked her not to call police.
• He returned shortly after and pushed in Taste’s bedroom window, according to Dayton Municipal Court records.
• He reportedly spoke to her before pulling out a gun and shooting into the window. The gunfire struck and killed Johnson, according to court documents.
• Cunigan entered through the bedroom window and chased Taste through the house before shooting her multiple times, an affidavit read.
• He was on parole for a felonious assault conviction for stabbing Taste at the time of the shooting, according to police.
What happens next?
• Cunigan has a second domestic violence and a having weapons while under disability charge pending via a bench trial, or trial by judge.
• It’s not clear if a verdict has been reached in the bench trial as of Friday.
Anyone experiencing domestic abuse or violence can visit Dayton’s Family Justice Center, which works with YWCA Dayton and the Artemis Center, for help. The Artemis Center has a free, confidential support hotline at 937-461-HELP (4357).
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