Slow cooker beating death followed fight about politics, lawyer says

LIVONIA, Mich. -- A defense lawyer says an argument about presidential politics led to a fight in which his client is accused of beating her 66-year-old friend to death with a slow cooker.

A suburban Detroit judge on Thursday ordered 50-year-old Tewana Sullivan of Detroit tried for first-degree murder in the October death of Cheryl Livy at Livy's home in a Livonia senior housing complex.

Police Officer Michael Lewallen says he found Sullivan sobbing near her mortally injured friend and saying she was "sorry" she "did it." An unconscious Livy was rushed to a local hospital where she died three days later.

Defense lawyer John McWilliams told The Detroit News the women were arguing over "presidential politics" and "whatever the controversy is between Democrats and Republicans." He won't say which woman took which side.

Sullivan was ruled competent to stand trial in January after the prosecution requested a mental evaluation, CBS affiliate WWJ reported.

Last month, McWilliams said Sullivan's blood alcohol level the day of the assault was 0.41 -- five times the legal limit for driving in Michigan, which is .08.

"It's a recipe for tragedy," he said. "That's just out of sight."

First-degree murder carries a mandatory penalty of life without parole. Sullivan's next court date is Feb. 12.