A Lawrence teenager pled guilty to felony second-degree murder last week for his role in a robbery that left 20-year-old Baker University student Roland Klundt and one other man dead this summer.
Seventeen-year-old Kellam D. Jones accepted a plea deal from prosecutors Nov. 13 in which he also pled guilty to attempted aggravated robbery and attempted aggravated burglary. Douglas County District Judge Michael Malone will sentence Jones at 9 a.m. Dec. 19.
Prosecutors will request Jones be sentenced to 13 years and 5 months in prison.
Assistant District Attorney Deborah Moody, who helped District Attorney Charles Branson prosecute the case, said Jones and 18-year-old Gage Hauk, McLouth, in the early morning hours of June 7, went to Klundt’s house at 1311 Delaware St. to rob him of drugs and money.
Klundt shot and killed Hauk, who was armed with an air pistol. Jones, armed with a rifle, then fired about eight shots, hitting Klundt in the neck and face, which killed him, Moody said recounting the events during the hearing.
Jones acknowledged the events as accurate, while also acknowledging to Malone he understood he was giving up his right to a jury trial and presumption of innocence by accepting a plea deal.
Jones was given the opportunity to talk with his family privately during the hearing for about 15 minutes. Klundt’s friends and family also were present for the hearing.
As part of the plea deal, prosecutors said they wouldn’t file charges against Jones for additional charges of robbery and burglary at Klundt’s house. Jones also won’t be charged for a misdemeanor possession of marijuana charge.
Julia Spainhour, a defense attorney with the Northeast Kansas Conflict Office, and Kip Elliott, are representing Jones, who was 16 when the crime occurred.
A felony murder conviction usually carries a sentence of 20 years to life in prison. Branson wasn’t able to return calls this week to answer questions about the decision for a plea deal.