ATLANTA - A 21-year-old man was sentenced Monday for stabbing a man to death in the parking lot of a Midtown nightclub. <br>
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Superior Court Judge Bensonetta Tipton Lane sentenced Ryan Smith to life in prison after a Fulton County jury convicted him Monday. <br>
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Smith was charged with stabbing Bobby Soleimani, 31, on July 23, 1999. Officials said the attack happened in the parking lot of Backstreet nightclub. <br>
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Smith claimed self-defense but Chief Senior District Attorney Kellie Stevens Hill told jurors that Smith stabbed the unarmed victim three times, possibly to rob him. <br>
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Hill said the two men had used drugs prior to the stabbing.