Lawrence’s list of murder victims
A total of 19 murders occurred in Lawrence during the past decade. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation provided information about what specific crimes were recorded as murders, which includes first- and second-degree murder and voluntary manslaughter. Crimes classified as murder reflect how the Lawrence Police Department recorded the incident during the initial investigation and don’t necessarily reflect how the crime was prosecuted.
No murders occurred in 2000, 2007 or 2009.
2001
• February: Shyra McGee, 23, was killed when a drunken driver, Brandon Gentry, ran a red light and struck her automobile near Sixth Street and Monterey Way. Gentry, 30, was sentenced to 71 months in prison after pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter. He was released from prison on Jan. 3, 2008.
2002
• July: Lawrence residents George “Pete” Wallace and Wynona Chandlee, both 71, were shot to death at their home on Learnard Avenue during a robbery. Damien Lewis, 22, pleaded guilty to both murders in exchange for prosecutors not seeking the death penalty. He was sentenced to 158 years in prison.
2003
• January: Michael Riley, 49, was stabbed and killed by his roommate, David Uptain, in an apartment they shared in Lawrence. Uptain was originally charged with second-degree murder, but pleaded to voluntary manslaughter and was sentenced to 96 months in prison. Uptain was released on parole on Nov. 3, 2009.
• March: Quincy Sanders was shot to death during a dispute and his body, riddled with 18 gunshot wounds, was found at 2603 Ridge Court. Tremain V. Scott, 22, pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter, and was sentenced to 61 months in prison. He was released from prison on July 2, 2009.
• August: Judith Vellucci was killed during a high-speed pursuit between police and Nam Ouk Cho, 19. Cho pleaded guilty to several charges, including second-degree murder, and was sentenced to seven years in prison. Cho’s earliest release date is today, Jan. 11, 2010.
2004
• April: Robert Martin, 28, was shot and killed at the Jefferson Commons apartment complex in Lawrence. Lafayette Cosby was convicted in 2004 of the murder. The Kansas Supreme Court overturned the conviction and granted Cosby a new trial citing errors committed by the prosecution. However, Cosby was again convicted of first-degree murder in 2008 and sentenced to 25 years in prison.
• July: Mary Miller, 46, was found strangled to death at her home on Carolina Street. Her husband, Martin Miller, was convicted of first-degree murder in the death and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for 25 years.
2005
• June: 3-year-old Sydni Perkins died from repeated blows to the head. Jason Dillon, who lived with Sydni and her mother, admitted to killing the child while baby-sitting. Dillon pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced to 199 months in prison.
• October: Nicole Bingham, Jose Gonzalez and Yolanda Riddle were killed in a fire at Boardwalk Apartments. Jason Rose, 21, was convicted in their deaths and sentenced to 122 months in prison.
• October: 5-month-old Risha Lafferty died as a result of a skull fracture. Lafferty’s father, Jay Decker, was convicted of first-degree murder in the case and sentenced to life in prison.
2006
• February: Topeka resident Robert Williams, 46, was killed in a shooting outside the Granada after a hip-hop concert. Rashawn Anderson was convicted of second-degree murder in the case and sentenced to 15 years in prison.
• July: Linda Begay, 37, died from an abdominal infection after being beaten with a table leg at her Lawrence home. Christopher Belone, Begay’s boyfriend, was convicted of second-degree murder in the case and sentenced to 48 years in prison.
2008
• February: Jerry Deshazer, 62, died of a head wound in his southeastern Lawrence mobile home. Shanna Friday was convicted of second-degree murder in the death and sentenced to 14 and a half years in prison. Jerod Buffalohead, Friday’s boyfriend, was convicted of voluntary manslaughter for his participation in the death, and sentenced to five years in prison.
• June: Gage Hauk, 18, and Roland Klundt, 20, were killed when Hauk and Kellam Jones, 16, broke into Klundt’s home to rob him. Klundt shot and killed Hauk, and was then shot and killed by Jones. Jones pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced to 14 years in prison.
• July: Jana Mackey, 25, was found murdered at the Lawrence home of her former boyfriend, Adolfo Garcia-Nunez. Garcia-Nunez was suspected in the murder and was arrested in New Jersey. However, he committed suicide while in jail in New Jersey.