The murder of 38-year-old Meshell Will in the Black Hills of South Dakota took a new turn on Tuesday when her lover, Richard Schmitz a South Dakota man entered an Alford plea before his trial.
South Dakota Man Dodges Murder Charge (Photo: Google)
South Dakota Man Dodges Murder Charge
A visitor found Meshell Will’s rotting remains four days after she went missing in August 2013. South Dakota Man Schmitz, 55, was captured and charged with second-degree murder nearly eight years later in 2021.
Schmitz filed an Alford plea to second-degree manslaughter, acknowledging the state’s findings while maintaining his innocence. Instead of the required life term for the dropped second-degree murder conviction, this felony offense carries a 10-year jail sentence and a $10,000 fine.
Deputy Pennington County State’s Attorney Roxanne Hammond said Schmitz recklessly killed Will. Because the 2013 autopsy left the cause of death uncertain, Schmitz’s arrest was delayed for years.
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Insights from the 2021 Pathology Report and Past Allegations in Schmitz’s Case
A 2021 pathology report ruling out natural, suicide, or accidental causes of death was vital to South Dakota man Schmitz’s arrest. The findings said the death was undetermined or murder. The investigator’s assessment said that Will died shortly after being last seen with Schmitz and was thrown over a slope within hours.
In the case, the state sought to reveal Schmitz’s prior relationships, where three women accused him of abuse. Judge Craig Pfeifle ordered a regular presentencing investigation report and a domestic violence report for Schmitz’s March 8 sentence.
Meshell Will’s terrible death in the rough Black Hills remains unsolved in this haunting tale of a long-pending mystery, a delayed arrest, and a last-minute plea agreement. The courtroom drama offers a deeper look at the evidence and earlier charges, bringing finality to a decade-long investigation.
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