RICHMOND —
A man who was shot three times when found inside a vacant house and faced up to 20 years in prison on a felony burglary charge walked free Tuesday after a jury found him guilty of a lesser charge.
Steven Murphy, 39, had been indicted on a charge of third-degree burglary in connection with a break-in Dec. 17 at a Hager Drive home. Third-degree burglary is a Class D felony, punishable by one to five years in prison.
However, Murphy has two felony convictions on his record, and he was indicted as a first-degree persistent felony offender, potentially bumping up the sentencing range for the burglary charge to 10 to 20 years in prison.
Murphy’s trial was Monday and Tuesday, and after an hour and a half of deliberation, the jury came back with a verdict of second-degree criminal trespass, according to Murphy’s attorney, Joshua Kidd. Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Tom Smith, who prosecuted the case, confirmed the verdict.
Second-degree criminal trespass is a Class B misdemeanor that carries a sentence of up to 90 days in jail and a $250 fine. Murphy had already served out the sentence because he’d been in jail four months before making bond, Kidd said.
“So he walked free today,” Kidd said Tuesday. Kidd said the prosecution had offered his client a plea deal of seven years in prison, but Murphy had opted to go to trial.
On Dec. 17, Murphy entered a vacant home on Hager Drive. Murphy’s father testified for the defense that Murphy had been living with his grandmother but often got into fights with her and left the house, Kidd said.
The owners of the house had asked a neighbor, Steven Womack, to keep an eye on the rental house, and he was alerted to the intruder by a motion sensor, according to preliminary hearing testimony from Kentucky State Police Detective Kenneth Bradley, who also testified at the trial.
Womack, who testified at the trial, entered the house to investigate. Bradley testified that Womack said he found the back door forced open and a backpack containing several screwdrivers, prying devices, knives and set of binoculars.
Womack told police he found Murphy hiding inside a closet. He called 911, and at some point during that call, he shot Murphy three times with a .38 caliber pistol, Bradley said.
Womack told police Murphy had started to climb through the window and made a motion toward his pocket, like he had a weapon.
Despite being shot three times, Murphy was able to get through a window and attempted to run away. A KSP trooper captured him, and no weapon was found on Murphy, the detective testified.
Murphy was taken to the University of Kentucky Medical Center to be treated for his injuries and was later served with an arrest warrant after he was released from the hospital.
Kidd argued at trial that Murphy was a carpenter and car mechanic, and the tools he was carrying were associated with his work. Kidd said Murphy was simply looking for a sheltered place to spend the night after being “kicked out” of his grandmother’s house.
Kidd said Womack’s testimony during trial contradicted the account he told police about the circumstances surrounding Murphy’s shooting. Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Tom Smith, who tried the case, said Womack’s testimony only had “minor discrepancies” from what he’d told police Dec. 17.
Smith said at least one of Murphy’s prior felony convictions had been for burglary.
Kidd said that his client plans on filing a civil lawsuit against Womack to recover costs related to the medical treatment of his gunshot wounds.
Sarah Hogsed can be reached at shogsed@richmondregister.com or 624-6694.
Local News
Man free after being found guilty of lesser trespassing charge
Neighbor shot man in vacant home three times
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