|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
SAS CITY, Mo. (BFMG) — A jury found Fredrick Scott guilty Tuesday of murdering four people in a series of killings that terrorized the Kansas City area nearly a decade ago, while acquitting him in two other deaths.
Scott was convicted of four counts of first-degree murder and four counts of armed criminal action in the deaths of John Palmer, Michael “Mike” Darby, Karen Harmeyer and Steven Gibbons.
Jurors found him not guilty in the killings of David Lenox and Timothy Rice.
Scott had been charged with six counts each of first-degree murder and armed criminal action in connection with the deaths of Palmer, Lenox, Rice, Darby, Harmeyer and Gibbons.
Several of the victims were killed at or near Kansas City’s Indian Creek Trail, a popular greenway and walking trail.
The verdict followed a trial lasting several weeks. Jurors began deliberating Thursday before returning their decision Tuesday.
The case had been delayed for years as courts considered whether Scott was mentally competent to stand trial.
Jackson County Prosecutor Melesa Johnson said the verdict represented a long-awaited moment for the victims’ families.
“It’s been a long time coming, and while justice can sometimes be delayed, I’m very grateful for the majority of the families that today justice was not denied,” Johnson said.
Johnson also acknowledged the families of Lenox and Rice following Scott’s acquittals in those cases.
“Of course my thoughts and prayers continue to be with the Rice and Lenox families, but this is the process, and I’m very proud of our trial team,” she said.
Johnson said prosecutors would seek life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Jury recommends life without parole
Following the guilty verdicts, the jury recommended that Scott spend the rest of his life in prison without the possibility of probation or parole for each of the four murder convictions.
Jurors also recommended 15-year prison terms for each of the four armed criminal action convictions.
The sentencing recommendations came after jurors heard victim impact statements from seven relatives of Michael Darby and John Palmer.
Brian Darby, whose father Michael was killed while walking his dogs along the Indian Creek Trail, said the verdict means Scott will no longer be able to hurt anyone else.
“He will never be out again. He will never hunt again,” Darby said.
Michael Darby was shot in the back of the head while walking his dogs along the trail in 2017.
Prosecutors argued during the trial that Scott stalked and targeted several middle-aged white men he did not know before shooting them at or near the Indian Creek Trail in 2016 and 2017.
During a police interview, Scott was recorded saying, “They never saw it coming.”
Scott was also convicted of killing Karen Harmeyer, a homeless woman in Grandview whom prosecutors said he did not know.
Asked whether prosecutors believed the killings were racially motivated, Johnson said investigators had not found evidence establishing such a motive.
“We have no evidence of that,” Johnson said.
Families describe years of grief
Before jurors considered sentencing recommendations, relatives of Darby and Palmer described the lasting impact the killings had on their families.
Darby’s brother, Bob Darby, described Michael as his best friend and “the best man” he had ever known.
Palmer’s widow, Catherine Palmer, told jurors she felt as though she had been “torn in half” after her husband’s killing and said she has struggled for years to regain a sense of normalcy.
The trial came after nearly a decade of legal proceedings involving questions about Scott’s mental health and competency.
Scott’s attorneys had argued that he suffered from mental illness and was not competent to stand trial. A series of court rulings and evaluations ultimately cleared the way for the criminal case to proceed before a jury.
Scott remains in the Jackson County Jail without the possibility of release.
He is scheduled to be formally sentenced Nov. 23.
Verdicts by count
Scott was found guilty of first-degree murder and armed criminal action in the deaths of John Palmer, Michael Darby, Karen Harmeyer and Steven Gibbons.
He was found not guilty of first-degree murder and armed criminal action in the deaths of David Lenox and Timothy Rice.
