A teenager was sentenced to 22 years in prison for fatally shooting a homeless man he mistakenly believed was a rival Red Lake Reservation gang member.
Michael W. Whitefeather, 18, was handed the term Monday in federal court in St. Paul in connection with the late-night killing of Anthony A. Wells, 22, on a northern Minnesota reservation trail in April 2018.
Whitefeather was among several fellow gang members who ran down Wells before the shots were fired at close range from a stolen shotgun, according to the criminal complaint and other case filings.
Whitefeather admitted being in a car with others that night, driving around looking for rival gang members while drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana.
They came upon Wells and a cousin of his, mistaking them for adversaries.
"The defendant never took the time to determine [Wells'] identity. Instead, the defendant assaulted and shot [Wells as he] pleaded for his life against an unknown threat," one prosecution court filing read.
In arguing before sentencing for a prison term of 27 years, prosecutors noted Whitefeather's criminal history of break-ins, vandalism and thefts.
The defense sought a 20-year sentence, saying in its court filing that "words cannot describe the regret, remorse and shame Michael Whitefeather feels" for killing Wells. The filing also pointed out that Whitefeather was born into poverty, had an abusive alcoholic father and fell into drug and alcohol abuse himself.
