Prosecutors: No charges filed one year after Springfield man died in shooting

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY3) - One year after a Springfield man was gunned down near his home, prosecutors say they will not be filing charges.

Jacob Gatten was shot and killed after a brief altercation on Sheridan Street in Springfield.

“When you have an injustice like this there’s consequences. There are actions for the people who did this. There’s been nothing,” said Marissa Gatten, Jacob’s sister.

She described to us what investigators told the family.

“Jake was driving home. He was on his street when cars were blocking the road. Jake drove away when he heard a gunshot,” she said.

Gatten says despite being told her brother was shot in the back, she says the family was told that no criminal charges would be filed for his death.

“We sat in a room with the prosecutor and detective, my mom, my dad, and myself. We asked numerous questions,” she said. “I will tell you that often they didn’t have answers. They couldn’t explain why they would say self-defense. They would just say that’s what the court could say. Our whole thing was like, well there’s always a defense that could happen. Why are we trying it in a small conference room? Why are we not bringing it in front of a judge or a jury?”

Greene County Prosecutor Dan Patterson confirms that while no charges have been filed in this case, one of those involved, Johnny Walker, is facing charges in a different case involving kidnapping and robbery in the first degree.

“He’s now shown a pattern of violent behaviors. He’s gotten away with killing somebody. What’s to stop him from doing it again when he has not learned that there are consequences when you take someone’s life,” said Gatten.

She says her family is hoping that investigators will take a second look.

“We would like for there to be some kind of, an even more thorough investigation of what happened and not ‘maybes’ and not ‘could haves’. It’s been a year. It’s been a really terrible year for our family. We just want there to be some kind of justice brought in the light of this,” she said.

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