ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — A man charged in the 2019 killing of a 19-year-old pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and three other related offenses in St. Louis County Circuit Court Monday.
According to a press release from the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, 27-year-old Ivan Henley admitted to fatally shooting Kelvon Phillips on Feb. 17, 2019, during a drug/gun deal on the parking lot of the Budget Inn in Spanish Lake.
During the plea hearing, Henley was sentenced to 16 years in prison. He must serve 85% of the sentence before he becomes eligible for parole.
Surveillance video from the Budget Inn revealed that Henley walked from his car, entered the front passenger seat of Phillips’ car, then stepped out of Phillips’ car to go in his trunk and returned to the passenger seat of Phillips’ car.
Then, the video shows “muzzle flashes where it cannot be determined who fired the first shot or what precipitated the gunfire.” Henley then stepped out of Phillips’ car, got back into his car and drove away, according to the release.
Bullet casing forensics revealed that there were two guns used during the shooting, but neither weapon was found. However, DNA findings revealed that blood found on the front passenger seat of Phillips’ car was Henley’s blood.
Also, Phillips and Henley spoke multiple times regarding drug sales prior to the incident via cell phone records, according to the release. “In one message the defendant offered to sell a 9mm firearm to the victim.”
"From the evidence in this case, the roles of victim and defendant could easily have been reversed, given that they were meeting to make an illegal transaction, both exchanged gunfire and both drew blood," said St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell. "The loss of Mr. Phillips' life is a tragedy and, working with our law enforcement partners, we are holding his killer accountable. But we also see on a larger scale that so many people in our community are living and dying by drugs and guns, and that is equally, if not more of, a tragedy.”
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Resources for crime victims:
If you have been a victim of a crime or know someone who has been, 5 On Your Side has compiled a list of resources.
The Crime Victim Center of St. Louis has multiple programs to support victims of crime. Crime Victim Center’s programs range from direct services to crime victims as well as “creating awareness and change within the systems they encounter.”
Life Outside of Violence "helps those harmed by stabbing, gunshot or assault receive the treatment, support and resources they need to find alternatives to end the cycle of violence."
The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis has the Neighborhood Healing Network, which serves people who have experienced crime, violence or been the victim of an incident that caused trauma.
Cure Violence is an international organization that is present in a handful of St. Louis neighborhoods. Violence interrupters are trained to deescalate violent situations within their own communities.
