Court documents allege murder of teen in Parkville stemmed from a dispute over a girl

PLATTE CITY, Missouri - Two Kansas City teenagers were charged Friday in the shooting death of another teen who court documents allege was killed in a fight over a girl.

Justin L. Dougan, 19, and Stephen L. Ellis, 19, both of Kansas City were charged with second-degree murder. Dougan faces an additional charge of armed criminal action and Ellis faces another charge of unlawful use of a weapon. The charges stem from a shooting early Thursday morning at 9 and 45 highways in Parkville that left 17-year-old Spencer Crosthwait dead.

Read Dougan's probable cause statement by clicking here .

According to Ellis’ charging documents, filed Friday in Platte County, Ellis received a phone call about 12:30 a.m. Thursday from Dougan who thought another person had stolen from him and had slept with his girlfriend.

Dougan asked Ellis to pick him up at his residence and drive him to his girlfriend’s house, Ellis told police.

Ellis said when he arrived at Dougan’s house, Dougan was carrying a rifle in a duffel bag and was accompanied by another man Ellis barely knew.

Ellis told police while they were on their way to Dougan’s girlfriend’s house when they spotted Crosthwait's vehicle at 9 and 45 highways in Parkville.

Ellis said Dougan told him to slow down, then Dougan leaned out the window and fired a single shot from the rifle.

Crosthwait was pronounced dead when authorities arrived to a nearby Price Chopper, where a passenger in his vehicle had driven the car immediately after the shooting.

Ellis told police he did not think the gun Dougan brought would ever be fired.

He also said after the shooting, he told Dougan to get out of the vehicle, but Dougan threatened to kill him and his family if he did not cooperate.

Dougan told him to drive to the Missouri River so that he could get rid of the weapon, and when Ellis said he did not want to, Dougan struck him in the face.

Ellis said he then did as he was told, and drove on Interstate 635 toward the river where Dougan threw the gun out the window on the 18th Street and K-5 intersection.

Ellis said he stopped his car a short time later to vomit and Dougan and the acquaintance walked away from the car while he was stopped.

He knew he had done something wrong, he said. His parents later contacted Parkville police, saying their son had been involved in a shooting and wanted to speak to authorities.

Now according to Dougan’s filling papers, he told police things happened differently. Dougan said Ellis and the other person in the car told him to shoot. And that Ellis told Dougan to bring a gun with him. Dougan also said it was Ellis who had fought with the teens in the other car prior to the shooting. While he did admit to not being truthful with police in the beginning he did say he was not the only person at fault.

Ellis and Dougan are both being held in the Platte County Jail on a $250,000 cash bond.

The third person in the vehicle was released from police custody late Friday afternoon pending further investigation.

Park Hill High School students held a vigil Friday night for Crosthwait at the Park High School football field.