Date: 2008-05-16
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KANSAS CITY, Mo. - John F. Wood, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, and Grace Chung Becker, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, announced that a federal jury returned a special verdict today finding that a Kansas City, Mo., man shall be sentenced to life in federal prison for the racially-motivated murder of William McCay on March 9, 2005.
(Media-Newswire.com) - KANSAS CITY, Mo. - John F. Wood, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, and Grace Chung Becker, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, announced that a federal jury returned a special verdict today finding that a Kansas City, Mo., man shall be sentenced to life in federal prison for the racially-motivated murder of William McCay on March 9, 2005.
The jury's special verdict concludes the criminal trial for Gary L. Eye, 21, of Kansas City. Eye and co-defendant Steven Sandstrom! , 22, also of Kansas City, were found guilty on May 8, 2008, of shooting and killing McCay because of his race and because he was using a public street. Eye and Sandstrom were also found guilty of shooting and killing McCay in order to prevent him from communicating information about the attack to a federal law enforcement officer. Eye and Sandstrom were also convicted of two counts of aiding and abetting one another to use or discharge a firearm during a crime of violence, resulting in the murder of McCay.
The penalty phase of the criminal trial for Sandstrom will begin at 1 p.m. Wednesday, May 13, 2008. Formal sentencing hearings will be scheduled by the court at a later date.
In addition to the capital charges, Eye and Sandstrom were found guilty of one count of aiding and abetting one another to destroy the Dodge Intrepid with the intent to impede or obstruct the possible investigation of a federal offense - along with one count of using fire to commit a felony offense. Eye was also found guilty of an additional count of interfering with federally protected activities (related to the first, non-fatal attack) and an additional count of using or discharging a firearm during and in relation to that crime of violence. Sandstrom was also found guilty of threatening to cause bodily injury to Rios to retaliate against her for cooperating with law enforcement authorities.
Evidence presented during the trial indicated that Eye and Sandstrom were involved in two separate attacks against McCay while he was walking to work at about 6 a.m. on March 9, 2005. Sandstrom was driving a stolen 2003 Dodge Intrepid with Eye in the front passenger seat and Regennia Rios, a witness who testified during the trial, in the back seat. In the first incident, which occurred at 9th Street and Spruce, Eye fired Sandstrom's .22-caliber revolver at McCay but missed him. Sandstrom drove around the block looking for McCay, who could have identified them to law enforcement authorities. When they caught up with McCay at 9th Street and Brighton, Eye got out of the vehicle and fatally shot him. The capital charges are related to the second, fatal attack against McCay.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys David M. Ketchmark and D. Michael Green and Eric L. Gibson, trial attorney in the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice. It was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.