Ricky Kiper Jr. sentenced for 2022 Vanderburgh County mobile home park homicide

EVANSVILLE — A Vanderburgh County judge handed down a decades-long prison sentence Wednesday to Ricky Kiper Jr., who pleaded guilty to felony murder in January midway through the first day of his jury trial.

Kiper, 34, was arrested July 27, 2022, the same day he allegedly shot and killed James Christopher McClernon, 41, at a West Side mobile home park where both men lived.

Wednesday morning, Vanderburgh County Circuit Court Judge Celia Pauli sentenced Kiper to serve 60 years in state prison for the killing and imposed an additional 15-year sentence due to Kiper’s status as a habitual offender.

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Kiper’s decision to plead guilty to felony murder just hours after his jury trial got underway stunned Pauli’s courtroom in late January. The short trial featured a dramatic outburst from Kiper, who called lead prosecutor Ian Blair a “punk-a** b***h” in open court.

According to an affidavit, Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the 5900 block of Maggie Valley drive at approximately 3 p.m. July 27 after a resident called 911 to report that a man had been shot.

On scene, Deputy Justin Chambers reportedly found McClernon lying inside a mobile home suffering from a gunshot wound. During Kiper’s trial, Chambers testified that he checked for a pulse but found none.

Affidavit:Evansville shooting suspect reportedly killed man for being a sex offender

Deputies arrested Kiper after a brief search, according to a probable cause affidavit filed by the sheriff’s office. During subsequent police interviews, Kiper reportedly admitted that he shot McClernon.

“The defendant implicated himself by admitting to shooting the victim twice,” Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Office Detective Matthew Elrod wrote in the affidavit. “The defendant was not remorseful for his actions and felt he did the right thing today.”

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Elrod would go on to claim Kiper killed McClernon due to McClernon’s status as a registered sex offender.

At least two people, including a family member of McClernon’s, submitted victim impact statements to the court prior to Kiper’s sentencing, records show.

Kiper’s 60-year sentence for the felony murder charge is toward the upper bound of state sentencing guidelines, which recommend a sentence of between 45 and 65 years for murder.

Including the habitual offender sentencing enhancement, Kiper could remain in prison for up to 75 years.

Houston Harwood can be contacted at houston.harwood@courierpress.com

This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Ricky Kiper Jr. sentenced for 2022 Evansville homicide