A 29-year-old Wichita man was sentenced to 27 years in prison in the "racially motivated" fatal shooting of 30-year-old Emmanuel Hardy in May 2022, authorities said.
Roger Gale Jr. pleaded guilty March 1 to first-degree murder. Prosecutors "possessed sufficient evidence facts to establish that the crime was racially motivated," according to a news release from the Sedgwick County District Attorney's Office.
Shooting Stemmed from an Argument Over Dog Feces
Police responded to a shooting call on May 28, 2022 at an apartment complex in east Wichita. They found Hardy with several gunshot wounds. He was taken to Wesley Medical Center where he died, The Eagle reported.
Gale was arrested and the gun used in the shooting was recovered. Detectives learned that the shooting stemmed from a argument in which Hardy had asked Gale to pick up his dog's feces from Hardy's girlfriend's yard, a probable cause affidavit said.
Gale followed Hardy and his girlfriend after the encounter. Hardy noticed a Chevy Tahoe following them to where his girlfriend pulled into an apartment complex in the 4900 block of East Harry.
Gale Hurled Racial Slurs at the Couple Before the Shooting
Gale, in the Tahoe, followed them into the parking lot, where Hardy's girlfriend and Gale got out of their vehicles and exchanged words, with Gale saying "remember me?"
Hardy then got out of the BMW. Witnesses accounts say that Gale pulled out a gun and muttered racial slurs at the couple, according the affidavit.
Hardy pushed his girlfriend out of the way and she started to run. She looked back and saw Hardy with his arms crossed in front of his face and then heard three gunshots, The Eagle reported.
Gale got back into the Tahoe and left. Police were able to trace the license plate from the Tahoe and found it abandoned in an empty south Wichita parking lot. Officers later searched a home and found the gun used in the shooting. The gun was loaded and appeared to have been fired, court documents show.
