A confrontation with a knife last summer between two feuding Lincoln men resulted in one being stabbed to death and the second getting a 35- to 50-year prison sentence for it Thursday.
Steven A. Alexander, 35, pleaded no contest to manslaughter and use of a deadly weapon for causing the death of 26-year-old Austin Gress as part of a plea deal that reduced the charge from second-degree murder.
His attorney, Doug Kerns, said there was animosity between Alexander, Gress and Gress' father, William Parrot, prior to the night of July 1, 2022, when Alexander saw Gress taking off with his bike while he was inside A’s Stop and Shop at 27th and Dudley streets, grabbed a knife and took off to confront him.Â
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He said Gress and his father had a vendetta against Alexander, and security video of what happened showed Gress going there with "aggressive intentions" after seeing Alexander through the window.Â
"Then the whole thing ensued," Kerns said.
Steven A. Alexander
He said Alexander was on the ground, Gress above him, when he stabbed him.
"This wouldn't have happened if the circumstances had been different, if the victim hadn't come there," Kerns said. "This wasn't an act of contemplation."
He said Alexander understands this is a tragedy for Gress' family, and there's nothing he can do to change things.
"If he could go back, obviously, he'd make completely different decisions," Kerns told the judge.
He said Alexander, who was homeless at the time, would call the police or do nothing.Â
Alexander said there were no words that could express how deeply and truly sorry he is that Austin Gress won't be able to see his son grow up and that Austin's father lost a son.Â
Gress had a daughter, too.
"I have to live with what happened for the rest of my life," he said, reading from a statement. "I have trouble sleeping at night because of it. I take full accountability for what happened."Â
Deputy Lancaster County Attorney Jessica Murphy said the relationship between the men soured when, three months earlier, Alexander came to Parrot's house with a gun, tapping on the window. Parrot came out and disarmed him and the gun went off.Â
"Then there was the altercation July 1," she said.
Murphy said Alexander was inside the gas station, safe, when he saw his bike being taken and ran after Gress with a knife.Â
"He introduces a weapon to that situation, runs after Austin Gress, stabs him four times and kills him," she said.
Security camera footage showed Alexander running toward Gress with a knife in his hand, followed by a physical fight and Alexander stabbing Gress in the upper chest and neck area.
Gress's father told police he came to the store to see his son being stabbed.
Austin Gress
Gress collapsed on the north side of the convenience store, where he died. And Alexander ran.Â
At sentencing, Lancaster County District Judge Jodi Nelson told Alexander life is full of choices; "and, to say the least, you made some very poor ones."
She said, regardless of the history, someone taking his bike didn't require him to pull a knife on anyone. And Alexander was the one who chased Gress, and it didn't make him the victim because Gress got off the bike, turned around and pushed him down.
"You're the guy with the knife, and you're the guy that used it," Nelson said. "It's just senseless. Totally and utterly senseless. But the bottom line is you killed somebody."
Remembering Lincoln's homicide victims of 2023
1. Julian A. Martinez
Police found 18-year-old Julian Martinez with one gunshot wound to his chest near 19th Street and Euclid Avenue on Jan. 21 after an argument over with a neighbor over their pet dogs devolved into a fatal shooting, according to authorities.
Prosecutors charged Martinez’s neighbor, 29-year-old Armon Rejai, with first-degree murder in the teen’s death.
, Martinez’s family said he cherished his sisters and nephews, who he loved to play video games and roughhouse with. He shared his life and love with his girlfriend and his best friend, along with numerous cousins and relatives, his family said.
2. Rudy Requejo Jr.
Rudy Requejo Jr., who was 22 months old, died at an Omaha hospital March 17 after weeks of suspected abuse and neglect, police investigators alleged in court filings.
Prosecutors charged the boy’s mother, 30-year-old Brittany Cook, and her boyfriend, 32-year-old Joshua Tackett, with child abuse resulting in the child’s death.
His family remembered Requejo Jr.’s infectious joy that, at times, brought previously feuding family members together.Â
“Junior had a smile that was like gravity,†his aunt said.
3. Ronald Gonzalez Rivas
Ronald E. Gonzalez-Rivas, 45, was one of two maintenance employees at The Lodge Apartments who were run over and killed at the south Lincoln complex on March 27.
A resident of the apartment complex, 27-year-old Taylor Bradley, was charged with six felonies for her alleged role in the brazen attack, including a first-degree murder charge in Gonzalez-Rivas’ death, according to court records.
In , his wife of 11 years, Georgina Molina, said she was deeply saddened by his death and asked for prayers for their family. Gonzalez-Rivas left behind two children, ages 19 and 26.
4. Christopher Karmazin
A longtime maintenance employee at The Lodge Apartments in south Lincoln, Christopher J. Karmazin was one of two men killed there March 27 when he and a colleague were run over and killed by a 27-year-old resident, police alleged.
Prosecutors charged Taylor Bradley with six felonies for her alleged role in the hit-and-run attack. She was charged with first-degree murder and use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony in Karmazin’s death.
, family said the Lincoln man left behind three children and a loving wife.
"Chris loved spending time with his friends playing board games and was an avid animal lover," a relative, Garrett Karmazin, said in a post pinned to the fundraiser. “He enjoyed spending time outdoors and working with his hands. His greatest joy was being a father."
5. Damien Brave
Damien I. Brave, an 18-year-old Lincoln man, died in the early morning hours of April 1 after he was shot four times at a house party the night before near 27th and Fair streets.
Police in Michigan later arrested 17-year-old Kashaun M. McCree for his alleged role in Brave's death, thought to have been the result of a robbery gone wrong. Prosecutors charged McCree, who police say fled to Detroit after the shooting, with first-degree murder.
Brave's close friend and family, who , remembered him as a goofy, fun-loving kid whose beaming smile demanded that others join in.
"If you felt like crap or you felt down, and you got one of his hugs, you just felt like you were safe," his mother, Heidi Brave, said. "I'm the mom. I should have made him feel safe. But the way he just hugged you, it just made you feel like you were something special."
6. Mark Kruger
Mark Kruger, 59, died May 7 after he was stabbed amid an argument at a family gathering that evening near 63rd Street and Baldwin Avenue.
Police arrested Kruger's son, Joseph Kruger, at the scene. The 40-year-old was later charged with first-degree murder and use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony for his alleged role in his dad's death.
In , Mark Kruger's family described the Lincoln man as a loving father, grandfather, brother and uncle who loved music, concert-going and riding his Harley.
"... He loved to make the world smile," Kruger's family wrote. "He loved camping, fishing and going out on the boat. Mark always, always gave compliments and encouragement to all and he would give the shirt off his back for anyone."
The family also to help pay for his funeral.
7. Zachary Svoboda
Lincoln Police found Zachary Svoboda dead at his home near the North 50th and Greenwood streets on Aug. 23, 2023.
An autopsy determined the cause of death to be intoxication from a combination of methamphetamine and fentanyl.
Investigators have identified physical and digital evidence, along with witness statements, that show Svoboda's death was intentional.
Police have alleged Amanda Wright devised and carried out a plan to kill Svoboda.
She is currently being held at the Lancaster County jail.Â
8. James Baylor
James Baylor, who often went by Jim or Jimbo but whose legal first name was Robert, died at a Lincoln hospital Sept. 5, nine days after he suffered a head injury in an apparently random assault near 13th and P streets Aug. 27.
Police of Lincoln on suspicion of first-degree assault in the hours after the attack. Prosecutors later enhanced the charges filed against Rodriguez Alvis, charging him with manslaughter following Baylor's death.
Baylor's friends and family remembered the 55-year-old as "a dear, kind, tender soul that touched a lot of lives."
"He was always interested in other people and what they were doing and always enthusiastic about them," said his brother, John Baylor. "And it was completely authentic."
9. Larry Cole
Larry Cole, 76, was found in his residence on the 1100 block of New Hampshire Street on Dec. 19. Officers went to the home on a welfare check, which was called in by one of Cole's family members.
Police received no answer when they knocked and smelled natural gas, which led them to call Lincoln Fire and Rescue who turned off the gas.
When the air cleared, police went in and found Cole dead inside, as well as another man.
Cole's death later was ruled a homicide.
Reach the writer at 402-473-7237 or lpilger@journalstar.com.
On Twitter @LJSpilger
Lori Pilger
Courts reporter
