A Louisville man sentenced to life in prison for the killing of a father and his 3-year-old daughter has had his double murder conviction thrown out by the Kentucky Supreme Court.
Kevon Lawless was convicted in 2022 over gunning down Brandon Waddles and his daughter, Trinity Randolph, in front of their home in August 2020.
His conviction was thrown out Thursday after the court ruled that the trial judge should have declared a mistrial when a juror learned that a witness was accused of perjury during proceedings.
Prosecutors said Friday that they would seek to retry the case.
On August 14, 2020, Lawless had a girlfriend, who was 17 at the time, lured Waddles outside his home, where Lawless was waiting and opened fire on him and his daughter, according to court records.
During the trial, exhibits were introduced by the prosecution evidencing how the killings were “set up” and Lawless had “motivation for revenge against Waddles,” according to court documents.
A man who drove Lawless to the shooting was accused of committing perjury while testifying at Lawless’ trial, according to the court.
While in deliberations, jurors sent a note to Circuit Judge McKay Chauvin revealing they were aware that the man had been arrested for “lying on the stand,” and one juror said they could “no longer make a decision truthfully.”
Chauvin rejected Lawless’ attorneys motion seeking a mistrial, but one juror was replaced by an alternate. Lawless was later convicted of two counts of murder and one count of burglary.
He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
The high court said Chauvin “committed reversible error by denying Lawless’s motion for a mistrial after the jury became aware of the trial court arresting a … witness for perjury.”
Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman said he was “determined to bring Trinity’s killer to justice.”
“The slaying of 3-year-old Trinity Randolph is personal for me. I stood with her mother at her Disney ‘Frozen’ coffin, and I’ll never forget the princess shoes she wore,” Coleman said in a statement Friday. “It’s heartbreaking that her family and this community are forced to relive that awful day and painful trial.”
Lawless remained in prison on Friday, according to online records.
State corrections records show he has previous convictions for attempted murder and assault.
The Associated Press contributed reporting.
