Sgt. Jonathan Lee, 27, was arrested and charged with murder in Geary County, Kan. Lee is a quartermaster and chemical equipment repairer assigned to Fort Riley. (Photo provided by Geary County Detention Center)
The trial of a former Fort Riley, Kan., soldier ended Thursday with a mistrial after jurors could not agree on whether he shot and killed a man in Geary County earlier this year.
Jonathan M. Lee, 28, was a sergeant at Fort Riley in February when he was charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of Carron Carter, 22, in a Junction City home about five miles from the base, according to court records.
The jury had to decide whether Lee was innocent, guilty of murder or guilty of a lesser charge related to Carter’s death. They could not come to a unanimous agreement.
A status hearing was set for next month to reset the trial, according to Krista Blaisdell, Geary County attorney.
An attorney for Lee declined to comment.
Lee, who has been in Geary County Jail since his arrest, was a quartermaster and chemical equipment repairer who enlisted in 2015 from Lawton, Okla., according to Fort Riley. He was separated from the service Aug. 15.
A witness to the shooting said Lee arrived at a home in Junction City, where the soldier had previously lived, and banged on the door, according to court documents. When the witness opened the door, Lee pushed past the person and went upstairs where he retrieved a .40 caliber Glock pistol he stored in a closet there because he could not keep it in his barracks room on post.
The witness’ name was redacted from the court documents.
Lee and Carter argued, and he told Carter he wanted him to leave the home because he didn’t want anyone else around a person whose name was redacted. Lee then fired the weapon, ran down the stairs and told the witness to call the cops.
The soldier then fled the home in his and returned to Fort Riley.
After his arrest at Fort Riley, local police executed a search warrant and found the handgun believed to be used in the shooting disassembled and hidden in Lee’s barracks room as well as ammunition, according to court records.
