Tyler Nelson was just months away from graduating at Kansas State when he was killed just blocks away from his Manhattan home. The man who killed him didn’t get charged with manslaughter or homicide. Nelson’s family wants everyone to know why.
“He was very loyal and always willing to help,” said Jennifer Rechsteiner, Nelson’s mother. She also said her son was a football and wrestling star at Shawnee Mission East, had a high GPA and already had a job lined up following his graduation.
“He’s gone … and it’s senseless,” she said.
Nelson was walking home drunk from the ‘Aggieville’ area shortly after midnight on Dec. 11. Blocks away from his little white house, Nelson mistakenly walked up to a similar white house on the corner of Eighth and Kearney. The door was locked, but the 21-year-old continued to knock.
"And this is where it becomes a problem … The guy decided to open the door. He's a felon with a shotgun that he shouldn't have even had,” said Rechsteiner.
According to Riley County police, 62-year-old Richard Smith answered the door. A convicted felon who was recently released from prison, Smith told police that Nelson entered his home before he shot him with a shotgun.
Smith was arrested on charges of possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia and criminal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. But he was not arrested for shooting and killing Nelson because of Kansas self-defense laws.
"What the law says is that a person has a right to defend themselves if they act in a reasonable manner,” said Riley County District Attorney Barry Disney during a phone interview.
"It says if someone unlawfully enters your home, there is a presumption that you are acting reasonable if you use deadly force,” he said.
Nelson’s parents were astounded there was not a manslaughter charge.
"He's not probably gonna do what I would consider an equal amount of time for the crimes committed,” said Mark Nelson, Tyler Nelson’s father.
Overland Park defense attorney Paul Cramm says Riley County police have followed Kansas self-defense statutes.
"I think that his family will probably be limited to filing a civil action for his wrongful death,” said Cramm, who added Kansas self-defense laws typically fall in line with other states, but have expanded recently.
“Now people are afforded great latitude to use physical force when defending themselves, particularly in the home,” he said.
The only likely way there would be a manslaughter or homicide charge against Smith is if it can be proven the 62-year-old invited Tyler Nelson into his home.
"Was the kid invited in or did the guy try to have a conversation over the threshold of the door to try to identify who this was? … If the kid came in without really being invited, there may have been a problem."
Rechsteiner, who hopes there is a law changed regarding felons and their proximity to college campuses, is still hoping for federal charges in her son’s case.
"He's allowed to protect himself, but he opened the door and that's why I don't understand why there's not manslaughter,” she said while talking about Smith.
Rechsteiner organized $5,000 in donations from her son’s funeral to go towards Healing House, a Kansas City faith-based substance abuse recovery organization.
Smith faces up to 42 months on meth charges and 23 months regarding the unlawful gun possession.
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Josh Helmuth can be reached at josh.helmuth@kshb.com.
