Police Beat
Shooting suspect found guilty
The man who shot a policeman just outside of Starbucks on the Delmar Loop two years ago was found guilty of first-degree muder and armed criminal action, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.
The shooter, Todd Shepard, 43, received the verdict on Thursday for the crime committed in Oct., 2008.
The case now moves into the penalty phase. Prosecuting Attorney Robert P. McCulloch is seeking the death penalty.
Shepard testified that he shot University City Police Sgt. Michael King, who was a graduate of Washington University, on purpose as part of a plan to start an anti-government revolution.
According to the Post-Dispatch, Shepard said his actions were motivated in part by his history. In 2001, his girlfriend was shot and killed by a St. Louis County police officer.
Shepard recalled the moment of the shooting at his trial, the Post-Dispatch reported.
King had been sitting in his police cruiser on the corner of Leland Avenue and Delmar Boulevard.
Shepard’s testimony revealed that he had past drug arrests and is serving a 23-year federal sentence.