JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Missouri Supreme Court on Tuesday vacated the 2018 manslaughter and armed criminal action convictions for an southeast Missouri man and sent the case back to circuit court.
Samuel Jerry Whitaker was convicted in the 2013 shooting death of his stepson-in-law, Carl Lee Streeval, in Wayne County. Whitaker was sentenced to 10 years in prison for manslaughter and 13 years for armed criminal action.
Whitaker’s appeal claimed the circuit court erred in failing to instruct jurors that he could claim self-defense to prevent arson. The Supreme Court cited substantial evidence that Whitaker faced imminent threat that Streeval was going to burn a mobile home on Whitaker’s property.
Authorities said at the time of the shooting that both men had contacted the sheriff’s department earlier concerning a dispute over ownership of the mobile home.
The ruling cited substantial evidence “that Whitaker reasonably believed Streeval was about to set the trailer on fire. As a result, Whitaker reasonably believed deadly force was necessary to protect himself from burglary or arson or both.”
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