Willard shooter gets back-to-back life sentences

Stenson sues Sheriff Arnott for $3 million, alleging he didn’t get to wear socks, etc.
 
 
More than two years after he shot two people, including one on the Greenway Trail in Willard, Kwaim
Allen Stenson, 33, was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences on Friday, July 23, at the Greene
County Justice Center in Springfield. Barring a successful appeal or a pardon, Stenson will spend at
least 49 years incarcerated, allowing for the two years he has already spent in custody at the Greene
County Jail awaiting trial. In Missouri, a life sentence is 30 years.
The shootings:
Stenson shot two people on the evening of June 22, 2019, Stenson shot George Brooks, of Springfield,
and Jason Long, of Willard. The Greene County Commonwealth reported in June of 2019 that Brooks
told officers he was riding his bicycle near the intersection of Alliance Avenue and Kearney when a
“white passenger car slowed down and pulled up from behind him with the passenger side vehicle
almost directly up against his bicycle.”
Brooks reported that his bike hit the vehicle because it was so close. Then, he saw the driver of the
vehicle pointing a black handgun at him. Brooks told officers he heard gun shots and said he believed
that the driver fired five shots at him. He believed he was hit in the shoulder, so he dropped his bicycle
and ran into a wooded area.
Brooks said the driver was a black male with a bigger body frame, wearing a dark colored shirt and
described the vehicle as an ‘80s model white passenger car with a boxy style, possible a Lincoln or a
Buick. Brooks was taken to the hospital with a gunshot wound to the shoulder.
Officers found Brook’s bicycle on the west side of the road in the grass. A broken mirror from a vehicle
was found near the center of the road where he said he was shot at.
Long was shot later the same evening; he was struck twice in the abdomen, damaging his colon, liver
and intestines. His fiancé, Amanda Bowser, said that while she and Long were walking on the trail, they
saw headlights approaching them from the south; they thought this was unusual as vehicles aren’t
allowed on the trail. They stepped off the trail to allow the car to pass, but as the car came within 10 feet
of Long, the driver pointed a gun out of the driver’s side window and fired about five or six shots at them
before continuing north, turning west onto Farm Road 94 and driving out of sight.
Bowser gave a description of the car similar to Brooks’; a white, boxy-style car, possibly a Lincoln. She
also described the driver as a black male.
Greene County deputies found three shell casings at the scene marked RMI.
Stenson apprehended:
Stenson was taken into custody later that evening in Fair Play while he was stopped at a convenience
store. A Polk County deputy sheriff observed him and his vehicle and realized they matched the
description of the driver and vehicle from the shootings; he detained Stenson.
Stenson was reported to have been found carrying two full-loaded magazines with 9mm rounds, a
holster for a Glock-style handgun, a large knife, and a bag of loose 9mm ammunition. A search of his
vehicle found a 9mm Glock handgun, loaded magazines, clothing, water purification tablets, and
binoculars. Some of the shell casings were marked RMI, like the casings recovered at the second
shooting scene. Stenson’s vehicle also had damage to the exterior, matching the damage caused by
Brooks’ bicycle.
Trial results in guilty verdict:
Stenson was charged with three counts of unlawful use of a weapon, two counts of first-degree assault
and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm. His trial began ran from May 17 through May 19.
During Stenson’s trial, the prosecution presented testimony from 18 witnesses, including Long, Bowser
and Brooks. Stenson did not testify during his trial, and his defense attorney presented no witnesses. On
May 19, the jury retired at 10:43 a.m. for deliberations; they returned with their verdict by noon; Stenson
was found guilty of two counts of first-degree assault, one count of unlawful use of a weapon and one
count of unlawful possession of a firearm. At his sentencing, Stenson received the life sentences for the
assault charges. He was also sentenced to 15 years for the unlawful use of a weapon charge, and 10
years for the unlawful possession of a firearm charge. The latter two sentences will run concurrently with
his life sentences.
On June 14, Stenson’s attorney filed a motion for a new trial; that motion was denied during Stenson’s
sentencing hearing.
Stenson’s lawsuit dismissed:
While he was awaiting trial, Stenson filed a lawsuit against Sheriff Jim Arnott in the U.S. Western
Missouri District Court on Jan. 23, 2020, alleging his rights under the 14th Amendment had been
violated. Among Stenson’s complaints was that while awaiting trial, he had been transferred to other
county jails, and that while he was being transported, he had not been allowed to wear socks,
undershirts jackets or coats in cold-weather conditions. He also claimed that at the Ozark County Jail, he
was in a cell without access to running water for four days, and at the Ozark and Pettis County Jails, he
had no access to the law libraries there. He also said that at the Greene County Jail, he could not
receive any items he purchased from the canteens at other jails. Stenson asked for $3 million in
compensation and the closing of the Ozark County Jail. His suit was dismissed on March 11, 2020.
As of press time, Stenson remained in the custody of the Greene County Jail, pending his transfer to the
Missouri Department of Corrections.