Gregory Landers, 56, of South Dakota, was sentenced to: 7 years He is in prison for shooting and killing Acey Morrison, a 30-year-old two-spirit he met through a dating app. The murder occurred on August 21, 2022, in his Rapid City trailer.
The case received national attention because nearly 18 months passed between the time Landers reported the killing and the 911 call. indictment In February 2024, a Rapid City grand jury found him guilty of first-degree manslaughter, in addition to drug and firearms charges. The manslaughter charge was later reduced to second-degree manslaughter as part of a plea agreement.
According to reports south dakota searchlight In 2024, prosecutors alleged that Landers and Morrison met through a dating app and arranged to meet at Landers’ residence. The next morning, Landers allegedly shot and killed Morrison. When he called 911 to report the shooting, he claimed he acted in self-defense. He continued to press his case through months of court proceedings.
Most of the documents, exhibits, photos and records related to Landers’ efforts to have the manslaughter charges dismissed under South Dakota’s “Stand Your Ground” law have been sealed. But publicly available documents suggest Mr Landers was prepared to claim he killed Mr Morrison in self-defense.
Landers said she let Morrison stay overnight, but she refused to leave when he asked her to. The suspect claimed he wrestled Prime Minister Scott Morrison with a shotgun, breaking his ribs in the process, before shooting him in the chest.
After the incident, he was treated for bruised ribs and a broken hand, according to court documents. The lead investigator in the case characterized the fracture in Landers’ hand as a “boxer’s fracture,” an injury that typically occurs when someone or something is punched.
Court documents also show Landers tried to hire an expert to retest the DNA on the weapon. In a letter to Judge Heidi Ringgren, he maintained he was innocent and wrote that he should not be convicted because of “incompetent” DNA testing.
Tests showed Morrison’s DNA on the weapon, including near the barrel, but the weapon contained more of Landers’ DNA. Pennington County State’s Attorney Lara Retzel’s motion, which said Morrison’s left index finger was blown off by the gunshot, consistent with her hand “being above the muzzle of the gun at the time of her discharge,” asked Ringgren to deny Landers’ request for immunity from prosecution.
In his motion, Mr. Retzel claimed that Mr. Landers had accused Mr. Morrison of factory resetting the phones, presumably with the intention of stealing and selling them. He later admitted to erasing his cell phone’s memory to hide information from law enforcement.
Retzel said Landers also said he did not have sex with Morrison, despite DNA evidence to the contrary. He also claimed that the fight between the two took place in a bedroom and closet that were not disturbed when police arrived.
“The defendant claims he acted in self-defense, but given the number of lies he has told, his words mean little,” Retzel said. I wrote Motion being made to Linren.
After Landers’ sentencing, Retzel said in a statement that the case was “incredibly difficult.” South Dakota Public Broadcasting.
“In a murder investigation, when there’s only one person left alive who can tell their side of the story, you have to rely heavily on the evidence at the scene to determine what happened,” Retzel said. “In this case, there were significant discrepancies between Mr. Landers’ account and the physical evidence, indicating Mr. Landers’ dishonesty. The evidence strongly suggests that Mr. Landers killed Acie Morrison, but the exact motive remains unclear.”
She added that the factual discrepancies at the scene, combined with the lack of witness testimony, led Landers to offer a plea deal, which he accepted about a week before the trial was scheduled to begin. As part of the agreement, Retzel’s office agreed to drop the remaining charges against him.
“Since Ms. Morrison can no longer speak for herself, it was our duty to seek justice on her behalf,” Retzel said.
Source: Metro Weekly – www.metroweekly.com
