Former Tulsa officer appeals conviction after Supreme Court tribal land ruling

TULSA, Okla. (KTUL) — Former Tulsa police officer Shannon Kepler filed an appeal with the state of Oklahoma stating it does not have the jurisdiction to convict him because it happened on tribal land.

Kepler, sentenced to 15 years in 2017, was convicted of first-degree manslaughter in the shooting death of his daughter's boyfriend, Jeremey Lake, in 2014.

A recent ruling from the Supreme Court says Oklahoma prosecutors do not have the authority to pursue criminal cases in a large portion of eastern Oklahoma because it remains an American Indian reservation.

• RELATED | McGirt v. Oklahoma could have lasting implications

Kepler testified that he believed Lake was armed and shot him in self-defense. Neither police nor witnesses ever found a gun at the scene or in Lake's possessions.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION (

0

)