Appeals court affirms McDermott conviction
McDermott
SANDPOINT — The Idaho Court of Appeals is affirming a burglary conviction against a Bonner County man who was convicted of an unrelated second-degree murder charge while awaiting sentencing in the case.
Ryan Michael McDermott was charged with burglary for entering the Ponderay Goodwill in order to take a wakeboard without paying for it in 2017. McDermott was found guilty of the felony offense following a bench trial in 1st District Court.
Before the sentence was imposed, however, a jury convicted McDermott of killing Robert Hegseth Wohali, 26. McDermott allegedly shot Wohali to death inside a recreational vehicle at Evergreen Towing in March 2018.
McDermott dumped Wohali's body on Gold Hill and initially denied involvement in the man's disappearance and death. McDermott later told investigators that he shot Wohali in self-defense during a physical altercation.
Testimony at his murder trial suggested Wohali and McDermott were rivals for the romantic affections of the woman who lived in the RV. The killing may also have been fueled by McDermott's use of methamphetamine, according to trial testimony.
Jurors were not persuaded by the self-defense argument, however.
Judge Barbara Buchanan ordered McDermott to serve a 12- to 25-year prison term for Wohali's slaying. McDermott was also ordered to serve a consecutive two-year term for the Goodwill burglary.
McDermott appealed the sentence in the burglary case, arguing that it was excessive. However, the appeals court ruled that Buchanan did not abuse her discretion in imposing the sentence, according to unpublished opinion released on Thursday.
"A review of the record in this case supports the court's exercise of discretion in imposing the burglary sentence. Therefore, McDermott's judgment of conviction and sentence is affirmed," Chief Judge Molly Huskey and judges David Gratton and Amanda Brailsford said in the ruling.
McDermott, 49, is serving the sentences at the Idaho Correctional Institution in Orofino, according to the Idaho Department of Correction. He becomes eligible for parole in 2030, IDOC's website said.
Keith Kinnaird can be reached at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com or followed on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.