Vanhemert Sentenced To 50 Years

Marquis Todd’s step-father Malcom Turner reads the victim impact statement from Marquis’s sister Kimberly Todd.

Oskaloosa, Iowa – Luke Vanhemert was found guilty of 2nd Degree Murder by a Mahaska County Jury in April of 2019.

On Friday, Judge Lucy Gamon sentenced Vanhemert to 50 years in prison, as directed by statute, and has to serve a minimum of 35 years before being eligible for parole.

Before the sentencing, Vanhemert’s attorney, Allen Cook, presented their case to the Court for an arrested judgment and a new trial. Cook argued there was a lack of the weight of the evidence in the case as it would pertain to malice and forethought. Cook argued that the state offered no evidence to establish any malice on Vanhemert’s part.

Cook stated that the evidence would better support a voluntary manslaughter charge.

Cook outlined his reasoning for the error in conviction and stated that the credible evidence in the case would lead to a finding of acquittal of a conviction for voluntary manslaughter.

“Your honor. This verdict has troubled me since it came down,” said Cook to the Court. “I don’t know what more I could have argued. All I know is that the result that the jury came to cannot be justice as I believe it to be. And because of that, either I have been ineffective, or there has to have been some mistake made in order for us to be here today.”

“Whatever fault I should be held responsible for and not sufficiently doing my job or whatever processes brought Mr. Vanhemert to this trial that lead to this verdict, it’s not just, and he should not be forced to serve a sentence in a murder in the 2nd Degree case,” said Cook before the Court, calling the verdict a miscarriage of justice.

Mahaska County Attorney Andrew Ritland said that the state resisted each claim by the Defense. “With all due respect, there is no error in this case. Thre is no miscarriage of justice in this case. There is no confusion as the Defense alleges.”

On the subject of malice and forethought, Ritland went on to say, “The evidence presented by the state clearly indicates that he did have malice, not least of which is that he had been armed with a knife prior to the altercation. That there was again a road rage incident prior to the altercation that Jeff Beard testified that the defendant stated he would quote ‘take care of the situation’ before the stabbing occurred; that evidence was taken out of residence before the altercation occurred. All circumstantial and sometimes direct evidence of malice.”

Ritland went on to say, “In this case, there is more than sufficient evidence to convince any jury beyond a reasonable doubt that there was malice and forethought.”

The Court denied the motion for a new trial, as well as the motion for arrested judgment.

Malcom Turner, the step-father of Marquis Todd, read a victim impact statement from Marquis’s sister Kimberly Todd.

“To lose a person who has been there with me my whole life is devastating,” Kimberly’s statement said in opening. “For me to never see or never hear or see anymore is baffling. He’s always there for me when I need it.”

“I remember the last time he was on break from school, and we were at my grandmother’s house, and I said ‘I can’t wait till we get old so we can reminisce on the past, just like my grandmother and uncle were doing,’” said Turner, as he continued to read Kimberly’s statement. “We had a long laugh, and we said ‘yeah, we’re going to have a lot to reminisce about.’”

“To wake up and not have a sibling anymore, it hurts like hell,” Turner said as he continued to read the statement. “My brother was my everything. We protected each other, and I’m so pissed off that I wasn’t there.”

“Why did my brother, out of all people, have to die,” said Turner, continuing to read from Kimberly’s statement. “If a man destroyed an eye of another man, they shall destroy his eye. If one breaks a man’s bone, they shall break his bone. An eye for an eye.”

“I won’t get to hold or hug my brother anymore,” the statement from Kimberly went on to say.

“The one thing I do know is for you, Luke Vanhemert, as you sit in that cell, I just want you to remember that ass whipping my brother was giving you.”

As that comment was read, Vanhemert gave a smile back to Malcom Turner.

The Defense would later mention the victim’s sister’s statement as a reference to Vanhemert’s declaration that he was only defending himself.

Malcom Turner then spoke about those words he had just read from Kimberly. “That’s from an angry young lady. So you can understand her.”

“I apologize if her statement offends anyone,” Turner said. “But she does have a right.”

“To see you smirking as I read, damn that helps me lose my…” said Turner while on the stand making his victim impact statement and checking his emotions.

“I have empathy for you because you are a young man. I know we all do things that we regret; so that’s about as far as I can give you, as far as a little sympathy for what you are about to go through.”

Turner went on to say he blamed Vanhemert “for hiding on the side of the house.”

“I’m not happy with just giving you 35 to 45, or 50 years. That don’t satisfy me. Really it doesn’t make me happy he goes to jail. It don’t. It don’t at all,” said Turner, who talked about the pain he and the family have dealt with over the loss of Marquis, who Turner had raised from the age of five.

“So this is how it affects me,” said Turner while giving his statement. “So as you smirk… as you smirk, I’m here. This isn’t just some book you close when you’re through thinking about it. I’m living. I’m breathing. I am the one who’s got to deal with this. Your’s is locked up. You can kind of move on.”

“I can’t even actually sit up and talk to my wife about the best thing that I’ve been involved in”, said Turner as he spoke about his time helping to raise Marquis. “I can’t talk to her about none of that because it just makes us sad. Makes her cry. Makes her mad.”

“I did everything America asks that you do with raising a child. And this is what I get back,” said Turner.

Turner said that he hates hearing the name Vanhemert, and asked that the Vanhemert family never again speak the name of Marquis Todd. “I don’t say your name, so don’t say his.”

“That’s my peace offering to the Vanhemert family, don’t say his f**kin’ name, and I won’t say yours. That’s my peace offering. Don’t say his f**kin’ name,” said Turner from the stand.

As Turner left the stand and walked back to his seat in the audience, he rapped on the barrier that separates the Court from the audience, saying, “there it ends.”

Defense Attorney Allen Cook said that Vanhemert would be seeking a new trial “and he will be seeking justice, as we do not feel justice has been done in this case.”

Vanhemert’s sentence, in this case, will not exceed 50 years, and the reception facility for his incarceration will be Oakdale.

Vanhemert has also been ordered to pay $150,000.00 restitution to the victim’s mother, Michelle Turner.

Vanhemert was also ordered to pay for an autopsy, and various category two restitution items.

Vanhemert will be subject to DNA profiling.

As she was about to give Vanhemert his sentence, Judge Lucy Gamon made a statement, “The defendant committed a violent crime which took the life of the victim. The victim, Marquis Todd, was a young man with great potential. That potential will, sadly, now never be realized.”

Judge Gamon said that it was very clear to the Court that the victim’s family and friends were completely devastated by the loss. “It is something they will never get over. The Court believes the sentence is justified.”