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A Vanderburgh County jury has found a man guilty but mentally ill in a murder trial involving a January 2023 shooting incident.
After the jury trial, Brandon Schaefer also entered a plea of guilty to a sentencing enhancement for his use of a firearm in commission of the murder, according to the Vanderburgh County Prosecutor’s Office.
Court records showed that on Jan. 1, 2023, just shortly after 1 a.m., patrol officers of the Evansville Police Department were dispatched to a shots-fired run after a male subject, later identified as Schaefer, called 911 and advised Central Dispatch that he “shot someone in the head behind the movie theater on First Ave.”
He also stated he had “thrown the gun in the creek across from the movie theater.”
Schaefer was charged with shooting 49-year-old Todd Keith Roll in the head behind Showplace Cinemas North.
The Evansville Courier & Press reported that Schaefer reportedly told police he had “thought about killing someone for some time,” according to a probable cause affidavit filed in the case.
According to the affidavit, Schaefer took clothing off the victim and wore it back to his apartment. At some point, he called 911 and told police he had shot and killed someone near the theater.
He also reportedly called a family member and told them he had “messed up” and that he wanted to say goodbye. The family member called police and reported the shooting.
In a news release, Prosecutor Diana Moers said that Deputy Prosecutors Stan Levco and Brett Niemeier did an excellent job trying the case and distilling down the expert testimony regarding the Schaefer’s mental state at the time of the crime.
“We are pleased the jury listened to the opinions of the experts in this matter and returned a verdict of guilty but mentally ill—which is a distinct verdict of guilty that holds the defendant accountable for his actions (not to be confused with verdicts that are not culpable by reason of insanity),” Moers said in written remarks.
“The evidence in this case showed that the Defendant knew what he was doing at the time of the murder and could in fact distinguish between right and wrong. Because of the actions of the Defendant, a completely innocent man lost his life,” Moers added. “It is clear by the facts of this case—a shooting of a completely innocent person who had never met the Defendant—that it is not safe for the Defendant to live among us in society. We will be asking the court to take this into consideration at his sentencing.”
Sentencing is scheduled for May 20 in Vanderburgh County Circuit Court.
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