Glen Scott Evans gets 25 years in fatal shooting

A Cape Girardeau County circuit judge sentenced a Dexter, Missouri, man to 25 years in prison Monday for his role in the fatal shooting of 34-year-old Sean Crow of Bernie, Missouri.

Under Missouri's truth-in-sentencing law, Glen Scott Evans, 46, will be more than 67 years old before he is eligible for parole.

In March, a jury convicted Evans of second-degree murder in connection with the death of Crow, whose body was found Feb. 20, 2013, in his truck outside a McDonald's restaurant in Advance, Missouri.

On Monday, Judge William Syler rejected a defense motion to set aside Evans' conviction in the case, which was in Cape Girardeau County on a change of venue from Stoddard County, Missouri.

At trial, prosecutors said Evans facilitated Crow's death by driving another Dexter man, 30-year-old Matt Cook, to Advance for the purpose of killing Crow.

Cook, who is set for trial in December in Dunklin County, Missouri, is accused of using his girlfriend's cellphone to lure Crow to the restaurant and firing the fatal shot.

In court Monday, Crow's sister, Shannon Smith, expressed sympathy for Evans' family but noted they still have the opportunity to visit and communicate with him.

"I feel bad for Mr. Evans' family. I can't imagine the shame he has brought to them," she said. "In saying that, I feel worse for my family. ... Sean's chance of seeing his niece and nephews grow up was taken from him with a single bullet. He can't show my kids his card tricks or tell them his silly riddles. All we have left of him are memories and ashes."

Smith said her brother had a close relationship with her children, who "thought he hung the moon."

Outside the courtroom, she reminisced about her brother's generosity and affection toward his niece and nephews.

Once, when Smith was struggling financially in the wake of a divorce, Crow asked whether she and the children were going to the fair -- something she told him they could not afford at the time, she said.

"He whipped out his wallet and gave me $100," insisting all of it be spent at the fair, she said. "He said no child should ever not get to go."

Smith said she wants her brother to be remembered for his sense of humor.

"His smile could light up a room. ... If you were sad or upset, he would have you laughing in minutes," she said.

In court Monday, Smith described how she planned Crow's funeral, choosing a Harley-Davidson-themed flower arrangement to commemorate his love of the popular motorcycles, selecting photographs for a slideshow and honoring a musical request he had made a few years earlier.

Crow had told Smith he wanted the Led Zeppelin song "Stairway to Heaven" to be played at his funeral when he died, she said.

"I never thought I would actually have to do it," Smith said.

She questioned whether Evans felt any remorse for his actions.

"I heard him tell his brother how he couldn't wait to get out and go 'party, party, party'" during a recess in his trial, Smith said. "That was when I realized that he did not care what happened to my brother. Who could be wanting to party while on trial for murder? ... Mr. Evans was partying at the same time we were planning a funeral."

In court Monday, Evans seemed to bristle at Smith's description of his conduct in the days following the shooting.

"Partying? No, I wasn't partying," he said, instead characterizing his behavior as "drinking a beer, dealing with a tragic event."

Evans has admitted he drove Cook to Advance but maintains he did not believe Cook was going to kill Crow.

"All my life, Your Honor, I have believed in accountability," Evans told Syler on Monday. "I've managed companies. I'm not big on excuses. ... I was wrong. I made bad choices, but, Your Honor, I just ask this of you: Let the punishment match the crime. I'm not a killer. I'm not a monster. I'm not a violent man."

At one point, Evans addressed Crow's family directly.

"For the last year, I have done a lot of praying for you, and I can only hope and pray that you'll find a way to forgive me for those actions that night," he said.

After the hearing, Smith said she doubted the sincerity of Evans' apology.

"That was just a last-resort thing," she said. "He should have been remorseful right after it happened."

Smith said she was pleased with the sentence.

"I feel like he thought that he was just going to get out of here with nothing, so 25 sounds great to me," she said.

Andrew Rehmer, assistant prosecuting attorney for Stoddard County, said the sentence was reasonable.

"It's a fair outcome," he said after the hearing.

Syler could have given Evans up to 30 years in prison.

Before the trial, Evans' attorney, James McClellan, had sought to suppress incriminating statements his client made to police after his arrest, saying Evans was too intoxicated and sleep-deprived at the time to know what he was doing.

A videotape of those statements was a key piece of evidence during the trial.

In court Monday, McClellan reiterated his concerns about the way the statements were obtained.

"The major argument would be that the motion to suppress statements should have been granted," he told Syler. "We believe that was an error."

Rehmer said prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for Cook, who faces charges of first-degree murder, robbery and armed criminal action.

"I hope he gets the death penalty," Smith said of Cook. "His options are pretty much death or life without parole. Death works for me."

epriddy@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent address:

Advance, Mo.