After delays, August trial set for Baldwin City man facing attempted capital murder charges

photo by: Kim Callahan/Journal-World

Junah A. Sisney, right, appears Monday, Feb. 9, 2026, in Douglas County District Court with defense attorney Branden Smith.

The trial for a defendant accused of attempted capital murder more than three years ago in Baldwin City is now scheduled to begin on Aug. 3.

The defendant, Junah Augustus Sisney, 23, is alleged to have fired a gun at multiple people on Dec. 30, 2022, outside the Bullpen Bar in Baldwin City, before driving around the block, firing at more people near the Baldwin City Library, then returning to the bar and firing again. He now faces two counts of attempted capital murder.

Sisney’s case has seen some delays due to his previous attorney withdrawing after false representations were made to the court and also due to concerns over Sisney’s mental fitness to stand trial.

Sisney has twice been at Larned State Hospital, but Judge Stacey Donovan has since deemed him competent to stand trial. His previous attorney, Nicholas David, had filed a notice of intent to offer a defense of mental disease or defect.

At his preliminary hearing in April 2023, a video of a police interview was played for the court in which Sisney told a detective that he shot at the bar and public library because he “wanted to kill some people.”

“Ever since I was a little kid, I’ve thought about killing people when they pissed me off,” he said in the interview.

David indicated in October 2025 that Sisney had offered to plead guilty to two counts of attempted second-degree murder but that the offer had been rejected by the state.

Senior Assistant District Attorney David Melton confirmed that the state was not interested in a plea deal.

“The state has determined that this is a case that needs to be tried,” Melton told Donovan.

Sisney’s new attorney is Branden Smith, who requested Monday that the case be put back on the court’s trial calendar.

If Sisney were to be convicted of attempted capital murder, he could face life in prison. He is currently being held at the Douglas County Jail on a $500,000 bond.