Richard Schmitz Sentenced In Decade Old Manslaughter Case

[Jaded]

For @Kitty

The man who pleaded guilty to a decade-old killing was sentenced in court Friday. After earlier being charged with murder, 55-year-old Richard Melvin Schmitz pleaded guilty in January to second degree manslaughter in the death of Meshell Will.

Schmitz was sentenced to 10 years in prison with credit for about two and a half years’ time served.

In court Friday, prosecutors asked for the maximum 10-year sentence, saying Schmitz is lucky with the plea he was offered, and that Meshell did not deserve to die the way she did and have her body left on the side of the road.

Schmitz’s attorney asked for a sentence of credit for time served and said there was a large amount of inaccurate facts, going on to say due to health issues, Schmitz wouldn’t be able to lift Meshell’s body. They also stated that there is evidence that Meshell wandered off and died, and not killed.

Seventh Circuit Court Judge Craig Pfeifle sentenced Schmitz to the full sentence, saying that releasing Schmitz would be inappropriate as he continues to be a danger to the community.

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From an older article....

The 38-year-old woman had lived in Custer for about six months when she disappeared. She was last seen alive on August 24th, 2013. What happened to her has been a mystery, until now.

According to a court document filed this month, she was in a romantic relationship with Richard Schmitz and the day she disappeared, the couple checked into a motel in Keystone. Six days later, her body was found just north of town. It had been dumped off the side of Iron Mountain Road.

Schmitz was a person of interest in the case, but wasn’t arrested until 2021 – eight years after Will’s death.
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A document filed by prosecutors says Schmitz has admitted to being mentally abusive towards Will. It goes on to say he has a history of “extreme physical violence” and details incidents involving multiple women, including two who believe he tried to kill them.

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