James Blanton [photo], was sentenced to 24 years for shooting his neighbor Yi-Ping ‘Peter’ Chang over an argument about the bass of his TV.

A 29-year-old Missouri man who fatally shot a neighbor over the bass of his TV has been sentenced to 24 years behind bars.

On Wednesday, James Blanton pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and armed criminal action in the shooting death of Yi-Ping ‘Peter’ Chang, 35, who had been watching a movie with his girlfriend when he was killed on Dec. 12, 2015.

The girlfriend, who was not identified, was not hurt.

The shooter lived in the same apartment complex in Maryland Heights as Chang when the lethal confrontation came to a head.
When officers arrived they found Blanton on the landing in front of Chang’s apartment. He stayed at the scene and cooperated with police, giving them the impression that he thought what he had done was justified, police said.
Blanton’s claim is that the shooting was self-defense, police say. Police recovered a handgun that investigators believe was used in the shooting. Blanton did not have a conceal-carry permit for a firearm, police said in court papers.

Blanton had originally been charged with first-degree murder, reported AP.

Responding officers noted Blanton demanded Chang “turn the bass down” sometime before his death.

According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the shooter had griped to other neighbors about the bass in the past. Some of them believed Blanton was sensitive to noise, claiming he would become agitated when they shut their doors, which would prompt him to slam his in protest.

Blanton wore a bulletproof vest under a sweatshirt when he killed Chang, said authorities, who also reported finding a Web page on Blanton’s computer to a story with the headline: “Man cites stand your ground law after shooting neighbor over loud noise.”

Blanton was deemed competent to stand trial despite being labeled on the autism spectrum, noted lawyers and court documents.