EDMOND — A co-defendant facing an accessory charge in the death of Dwite Morgan, aka “Bicycle Bob,” has reached a plea agreement with prosecutors all but ending the nearly three-year saga.

Two days after Connor Mason, 21, of Edmond, changed his plea from not guilty to guilty on a first-degree murder charge in Morgan’s death, Nikolas Kerr, of Edmond, appeared before District Judge Jerry Bass.

Kerr, who faced an accessory after the fact of first-degree murder for not telling police what he knew about Morgan’s death in October 2009, appeared in Oklahoma County District Court with his attorney Don Jackson. Kerr was released from jail on a $50,000 bond set in March 2010.

Kerr pleaded guilty to the accessory charge and to possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia charges, according to court records. He will not serve any prison time, but will serve probation for both charges.

He also pleaded guilty to a felony animal cruelty charge filed in October 2009 for which he will serve probation.

Jackson said he and his client are pleased with the outcome, which will allow Kerr to move on with his life. Jackson said Kerr did not participate in planning the murder, did not participate in committing the crime and did not know about it until his conversation with Mason.

“He’s not a murderer,” Jackson said of Kerr.

Jackson said this has been a long, hard and difficult case, and he is relieved it is over. Since being released from jail Kerr has taken many positive steps in his life, including getting a full-time job, Jackson said. He also wants to obtain a college degree.

In probable cause affidavits, Edmond Police said Kerr admitted hearing Mason talk about how he had murdered a homeless man, and that Kerr drove Mason to the crime scene to look for a flashlight. Nothing in the documents stated Kerr physically participated in the crime.

Originally, Kerr and Mason were charged with first-degree murder. In court, Kerr entered a not guilty plea to that charge.

In January 2010, The Edmond Sun published a story in which Jackson said Kerr was charged to get him to testify for the state against Mason.  

“He’s absolutely not guilty of murder,” Jackson said of Kerr at the time.

In March 2010, The Sun reported that Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater amended the first-degree murder charge against Kerr to accessory after the fact of first-degree murder.

Trials for Mason and Kerr were scheduled to begin Monday, but are now not necessary.

Steve Nash, attorney for Heather Holden, a former fellow co-defendant arrested on an accessory to first-degree murder after the fact charge, said he fully expected Mason’s change of heart before the start of the trial.

After Mason’s hearing on Wednesday, Assistant District Attorney Clayton Niemeyer said the state was preparing for the start of the trial, and the development was a surprise. When asked about what the development meant for justice for the victim, he said that depends on what happens when Mason is sentenced Sept. 6.

Mason’s attorney Shawn Jefferson said his client was  accepting responsibility for his actions and that he was “incredibly remorseful.”

Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater has deferred comment until after Mason is sentenced. Kerr’s legal issues in Oklahoma County have been resolved. Heather Holden’s legal issues also have been resolved, according to court records.



ACTIONS FREE SUSPECT

Nash said the actions of Shaun Parker and Holden, Parker’s former husband, prevented an innocent man from potentially being wrongfully convicted.

Initially, Travis Jim, a local homeless man, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder in Morgan’s death. Jim testified in court that he found Morgan’s body and notified police. During Mason’s preliminary hearing, Jim said he confessed to get out of the approaching winter weather.

On Nov. 10, 2009, an investigator spoke to a police officer who said a male witness identified as Shaun Parker had come forward saying he knew who killed Morgan, according to court records.

Parker told police that on Oct. 18, 2009, he and his wife, Heather Parker, aka Heather Holden, were living with her father at a residence in Edmond, according to court records. Shaun Parker told police his wife received a phone call from Connor Mason, a friend, who asked if he could come by their home.

Parker said Mason arrived between 10:30 and 11 a.m., according to court records. Mason asked him and his wife what their favorite body part was. Mason pulled a plastic bag out from his pocket and opened it.

Parker said he saw what looked like a clear plastic glove covered with what he believed to be blood, according to court records. Parker asked his wife what was in the glove and she told him it was a finger, police said. Parker asked Mason if it was a real finger and Mason reportedly replied, “That depends on whether you’re going to call the police.”

When Parker told Mason he wasn’t going to call the police, Mason reportedly said the finger was real, police said. Parker told police he never actually saw the finger, but believed his wife when she told him it was a finger.

Mason reportedly told Parker he had “killed a homeless guy” and he had been planning the murder since May 2009, police said. Mason reportedly said he “hit the homeless guy in the head with a hammer until the hammer head flew off” and that he “took out his pocket knife to finish him off.”

Kerr led Edmond officers to a pond where a knife believed to be the murder weapon was found. In turn, that development led to Morgan’s body being exhumed and the recovery of additional evidence related to the knife.

Kerr, Holden, Parker and Jim were likely going to testify in Mason’s trial, which was scheduled to begin Monday. Kerr and Holden were expected to be witnesses for the state. In court records, defense attorneys predicted the trial would last about two weeks.



marks@edmondsun.com | 341-2121, ext. 108