SEDGWICK COUNTY—A Kansas teen accused in a December homicide made a court appearance this week.
Philip Walls, 18, pled guilty to second-degree murder, attempted aggravated robbery, and aggravated kidnapping, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's Office.
Around 2:00 a.m. Dec. 6, the Blackwell, Oklahoma Police Department contacted Sedgwick County Dispatch, reporting a shooting investigation involving two individuals including Walls who had entered a Blackwell hospital, with one of them sustaining a gunshot wound, according to Officer Andrew Ford.
Following discussions with the subjects, Blackwell Police shared information with Sedgwick County Dispatch. Consequently, the Wichita Police Department was alerted to respond to the Hydraulic and MacArthur area based on information suggesting that the shooting victim, 34-year-old Daniel McPherson, would be found there.
Upon arrival, officers discovered McPherson with a gunshot wound to his head. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Homicide investigators were dispatched to conduct the investigation and later traveled to Blackwell, Oklahoma where Walls and James Sawyer, 19, Wichita, were in custody.
On December 13, Walls was booked into the Sedgwick County Jail. Sawyer was booked into the Sedgwick County Jail Jan. 16, according to online jail records. He has also been charged with murder.
in the December 2023 death of Daniel McPherson at a home near MacArthur and Hydraulic. He was shot in the head on December 5, according to court documents.
The Blackwell, Oklahoma Police Department contacted Sedgwick County dispatch early on the morning of December 6 regarding a shooting investigation. Two people, one of whom suffered a gunshot wound, had shown up at a local hospital.
Walls and another teen, James Giovanni Lee Sawyer,were taken into custody in Kay County, and Wichita homicide detectives traveled there to investigate. Deputies brought both backfrom Oklahoma to face charges.