BELLINGHAM, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – A Bellingham woman convicted of killing a transient man has been sentenced.

67-year-old Lynda Mercy will spend the next 23 years in prison after a jury found her guilty of second-degree murder.

My Bellingham Now previously reported that Mercy was arrested in 2021 after the body of Thomas Flood was found in the Semiahmoo area.

Mercy was established as a suspect after surveillance video captured her driving and parking Flood’s van in Fairhaven.

Court documents state that Mercy’s mental health had been in rapid decline since the start of the COVID lockdowns.

Witnesses said she travelled to Langley, where Flood was living, in an effort to find more secure housing.

It’s still unclear how she came into contact with Flood or why she fatally shot him before taking his van back to Whatcom County.