HARTLAND, Wis. (Court TV) – A Wisconsin man was sentenced Friday after a jury convicted him of felony murder and aggravated battery.
Kevin Sehmer was given a 12-year sentence with seven years of inital confinement followed by five years of extended supervision. Sehmer must remain sober and submit to testing each week and was given 423 days credit for time served.
One June 17, 2023, Joshua Davies and his wife were at a wine bar when they were approached by Kevin Sehmer, who told Davies his tattoos were a sin and he was going to hell.
Kevin Sehmer appears in court Aug. 1, 2024. (Court TV)
According to testimony, Davies and his wife got up to leave to avoid a scene, but Sehmer followed them, punching Davies in the face. Davies, 39, lost consciousness and hit the ground, striking the back of his head on the concrete.
When police arrived, Davies was slipping in and out of consciousness on the sidewalk. Doctors determined he had two skull fractures on the back of his head and an active brain bleed in several areas. Davies was admitted to the ICU. He died from his injuries 27 days later.
According to a criminal complaint, Sehmer told the Hartland Police Department he “lost his cool” when Davies said something to him. He claimed he was protecting himself when he pushed the victim because he thought Davies and another bar patron were poised to attack him with barstools. Surveillance footage from the bar, however, contradicted Sehmer’s account.
DAILY TRIAL UPDATES
DAY 4 – 9/6/24
- Kevin Sehmer is sentenced for the death of Joshua Davies.
- WATCH: Tattoo Punch Murder Trial: Kevin Sehmer Speaks Before Sentencing
- WATCH: Tattoo Punch Murder Trial: Victim Impact Statements
DAY 3 – 8/1/24
- The 12-person Waukesha County jury deliberated less than three hours before convicting Sehmer of felony murder during aggravated battery with the intent to cause bodily harm.
- The jury announced it had reached a verdict within minutes of rewatching clips of the defendant’s police interview.
- WATCH: Tattoo Punch Murder Trial: Watch the Verdict
- Speaking after the verdict, DA Sue Opper said the request to watch the interviews was encouraging because the State believed they showed Sehmer lying to detectives. In the interview clips, Sehmer said victim Josh Davies threatened him with a stool and gave different accounts of how he responded, saying first that he pushed Davies, then saying that he pushed the stool into Davies, causing him to fall to the ground. Sehmer agreed with the detective that it was his use of force that sent Davies to the ground.
- Both sides delivered closing arguments after the jury heard from the last defense witness, a Hartland police officer who took bystander Jon LaPorte’s statement. LaPorte said in the statement he “possibly” saw victim Josh Davies pick up a stool and walk with it toward defendant Kevin Sehmer, which contradicts LaPorte’s testimony Wednesday that it was Sehmer who threw the stool.
- Sehmer spoke briefly as he told the judge he would not testify.
- Judge William Domina denied the defense’s motion to dismiss citing in part “the stool issue” as something the jury will have to decide as triers of fact. The judge also said Sehmer’s decision to follow the victim outside suggested he introduced himself into the situation and was not entitled to a self-defense claim.
DAY 2 – 7/31/24
- In a clear and audible recorded police interview that could be played without captions, Kevin Sehmer gave two accounts of the moment he used force against Josh Davies, but denies throughout that he ever punched Davies.
- First, Sehmer said Davies and Davies’ friend, Bryan Richardson, threatened him with bar stools raised, prompting Sehmer to “push” Davies, who subsequently fell to the ground. Later on in the interview, Sehmer said he “violently” pushed the stool into Josh Davies, causing Davies to fall to the ground.
- Sehmer’s account, which prosecutors played at the end of the day, gave the jury yet another version of events to consider after hearing different accounts from other people who were present for the clash.
- Bystander and musician Jon LaPorte, who was packing up his equipment after playing a set at the bar where the altercation occurred, said he saw Sehmer throw a stool in the street then take a swing at Josh Davies. He’s the only person to say Sehmer threw a stool.
- The victim’s wife, Jen Davies, said she saw Davies “chuck” the stool at Sehmer in self-defense before Sehmer punched Davies.
- Davies’ friend, Laura Burke, said she saw Davies pick up the stool but didn’t see what happened next.
- Bryan Richardson, Davies’ friend, said he didn’t see Davies pick up the stool but saw it on the ground next to Davies after Sehmer punched him.
- The jury saw video of the verbal altercation inside the bar and portions of the confrontation outside the bar.
- A alcohol forensic consultant testified out of order for the defense about how Davies’ elevated blood alcohol levels could have impaired his motor vehicle skills.
DAY 1 – 7/30/24
- Opening statements were delivered by the defense and prosecution
- The State’s first witness was a police officer who was on the scene
