Topeka Man Sentenced to 33 Years for Fatal Christmas Eve 2011 Shooting

TOPEKA, KS—A Topeka man has been sentenced to 33 years in federal prison without parole in the fatal shooting of a liquor store clerk on Christmas Eve 2011, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said today.

Matthew Daniel Myers, 45, Topeka, Kansas, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Topeka to one count of discharging a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.

Grissom said his office worked with Shawnee County District Attorney Chad Taylor on the case. Taylor’s office dismissed charges Myers was facing in state court so the case could be prosecuted in federal court.

“We are targeting federal resources in the fight against violent crime,” Grissom said. “This case shows what we can do when we work together.”

In his plea, Myers admitted that about 1:30 p.m. December 24, 2011, he entered the Hudson Liquor store at 810 S.E. 15th in Topeka. He was wearing a stocking cap and pajama pants and carrying a crowbar. Myers demanded the clerk, Matthew Hill, give him money. Hill handed over the money and then attempted to retrieve a .38 caliber handgun from a nearby drawer. Myers hit Hill with the crowbar, knocking Hill to the ground. Myers then picked up the handgun and shot Hill.

Myers started to leave the store but returned and shot Hill in the head when Hill tried to get up from the floor. The shooting was captured on the store’s video surveillance system.

The handgun from the shooting has never been found, but DNA testing obtained from the crowbar and the stocking cap were consistent with Myers’ DNA profile.

Grissom commended the Topeka Police Department, the Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office, Shawnee County District Attorney Chad Taylor’s Office, the FBI, Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike Warner, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared Maag for their work on the case.