White cop who shot dead his daughter's mixed race boyfriend is convicted of first-degree manslaughter after THREE mistrials and gets 15 years behind bars

  • Shannon Kepler was convicted of first-degree manslaughter on Wednesday
  • The ex-cop was on trial for the fourth time for the 2014 fatal shooting of his daughter's black boyfriend, Jeremy Lake, 19
  • Kepler was off-duty when he shot Lake and told investigators he fired because he thought the teen had a gun
  • But police found no gun on Lake or at the scene of the fatal shooting 
  • Kepler said he was trying to protect his daughter, Lisa Kepler, because she was living in a crime-ridden neighborhood
  • Jurors in Kepler's previous three trials deadlocked 11-1, 10-2 and 6-6, forcing the judge to declare mistrials 

A white former Oklahoma police officer has been convicted of first-degree manslaughter in his fourth trial for the 2014 fatal shooting of his daughter's black boyfriend. 

Ex-Tulsa police officer Shannon Kepler was sentenced to 15 years in prison after jurors deliberated for more than six hours and reached a verdict for a lesser charge late Wednesday in his first-degree murder trial.

Kepler was an off-duty 24-year-police veteran at the time when he shot 19-year-old Jeremey Lake who was walking with his daughter Lisa Kepler on August 5, 2014.  

His attorneys have previously said he was trying to protect his daughter, while Kepler claimed he fired in self-defense because Lake was armed with a semi-automatic weapon.

Police didn't find a weapon on Lake or at the scene. 

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Shannon Kepler (above left), a white former Oklahoma police officer, has been convicted of first-degree manslaughter in his fourth trial for the 2014 fatal shooting of his daughter's black boyfriend

Shannon Kepler (above left), a white former Oklahoma police officer, has been convicted of first-degree manslaughter in his fourth trial for the 2014 fatal shooting of his daughter's black boyfriend

Shannon Kepler
Jeremy Lake

Kepler (left in mugshot) shot Jeremey Lake (right), 19, dead in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on August 5, 2014. Lake was with Kepler's daughter Lisa at the time of the fatal shooting

Lisa Kepler
Jeremey Lake

Lisa Kepler (left) said she met Lake (right) while he was volunteering at a homeless shelter where she was staying

Lisa Kepler was 18 years old when she met Lake while he was volunteering at a homeless shelter where she was staying.

She told the court her parents dropped her off at the shelter in July 2014 after she had been sneaking out at night and acting out.

After a few weeks, Lake offered her a place to stay at the home he shared with his aunt, she testified.

She said on the day of the shooting, she and Lake were passing out water bottles to the homeless before walking back to his aunt's home. 

She testified that she noticed her father's SUV parked out front and that he started asking her questions. 

Lake (left) offered Lisa (above right after his death) a place to stay at the home he shared with his aunt (left of right)

The young couple were walking back to the home when her father (above) confronted them and killed Lake. The ex-cop later tried to claim that Lake had a weapon on him, but investigators did not find one at the scene or on Lake's body

The young couple were walking back to the home when her father (above) confronted them and killed Lake. The ex-cop later tried to claim that Lake had a weapon on him, but investigators did not find one at the scene or on Lake's body

During the latest trial, the ex-cop said he was going to call 911 about the shooting but called his wife, Gina Kepler, instead because 'he realized he was in a pickle.' Kepler turned himself in the next morning along with his wife, who was also a Tulsa police officer

During the latest trial, the ex-cop said he was going to call 911 about the shooting but called his wife, Gina Kepler, instead because 'he realized he was in a pickle.' Kepler turned himself in the next morning along with his wife, who was also a Tulsa police officer

She said her father asked what she was doing in the neighborhood, but she couldn't remember how she responded, she testified.

Gina Kepler was arrested on a complaint of being an accessory but was never charged

Gina Kepler was arrested on a complaint of being an accessory but was never charged

Kepler said he was trying to protect his daughter, because she was living in a crime-ridden neighborhood.

Lake's aunt said her nephew was reaching out to shake Kepler's hand to introduce himself when Kepler fired his weapon. 

The former Tulsa police officer then fled in his vehicle, court records show. 

During the latest trial, the ex-cop said he was going to call 911 but called his wife, Gina Kepler, instead because 'he realized he was in a pickle.' 

Kepler turned himself in the next morning along with his wife, who was also a Tulsa police officer.

She was arrested with her husband on a complaint of being an accessory after the fact of murder, but was not charged because prosecutors said there wasn't evidence to support it.

Pictured above is their Facebook relationship status the day Lake was killed

Pictured above is their Facebook relationship status the day Lake was killed

Jurors in Kepler's previous three trials deadlocked 11-1, 10-2 and 6-6, forcing the judge to declare mistrials.

Although they couldn't decide on the murder charge, jurors in the first trial convicted Kepler of recklessly using his firearm. 

During this last trial, both the defense and prosecution focused their closing arguments on Lake's younger brother's testimony. 

At the time of the incident, he was aged 13 and witnessed what happened from the porch. 

The prosecution argued during this case that the teen knew specific details about the color of the gun used to kill Lake. He also knew what Kepler wore when he shot Lake and which direction the SUV drove towards after the incident. 

But the defense argued that the details the teen provided could not be depended on due to his age and the extensive media coverage the case had received. 

Kepler's lawyers also argued that it was not likely he would murder someone after serving over two decades on the police force.