Man charged with murder in Jefferson City bar shooting asks judge to reject death penalty

JEFFERSON CITY, Missouri (KMIZ)

A man accused of premeditated murder of two people at a Jefferson City bar is asking the judge to stop the state’s attempt to seek the death penalty.

Damien Davis of Kansas City, Missouri, was charged with two counts of premeditated murder, two counts of armed criminal action, two counts of unlawful use of a weapon and one count of illegal possession of a weapon in connection with the shooting deaths of 26-year-old Skylar Smock and 43-year-old Corey Thames on November 26, 2022 at J. Pfenny’s Sports Grill and Pub.

Davis is being held without bail in the Cole County Jail.

Cole County Attorney Locke Thompson filed a notice of intent seeking the death penalty in September.

On Monday, Davis’ attorney, Thomas Jacquinot, filed a motion to abolish the death penalty, arguing that there are too many reasons why a defendant could be punished with the death penalty and that the state had eliminated a step in determining who was eligible for the death penalty.

The motion also argues that Davis should not have been charged with first-degree murder because he walked into the bar unarmed, was attacked by Thames, took Thames’ gun, and accidentally shot a bar employee before shooting Thames.

According to previous reports, Smock was trying to break up a fight and remove Thames from the store when Davis began firing shots, investigators said.

According to police, Davis admitted to shooting Thames but said he shot Smock unintentionally. Previous reports indicate that Davis said at his arraignment in November 2022, “I saved my life.”

Court documents allege that Davis’ statement to police that night did not match evidence at the crime scene, including the location of the bullet casings or video evidence captured by the bar’s cameras.