A former attorney in Michigan was sentenced to prison after he admitted to fatally shooting a friend in a bar bathroom over a joke about holding his dog for ransom.
Evan Dixon was sentenced on Monday, August 31, to serve between 18 to 40 years in prison for the death of Theron Duncan, according to online records viewed by Us. Additionally, he was ordered to pay restitution to Duncan’s family for funeral expenses that cost $14,349.56.
Dixon pleaded no contest to one count of second-degree murder in June. As part of his plea deal, prosecutors agreed to dismiss his charges of first-degree premeditated murder and felony firearm possession, according to MLive.com.
Dixon, 62, killed Duncan, 53, on November 11, 2023. The friends were drinking at Douglass House Saloon in Houghton, Michigan, and Dixon brought his dog Hazel to the bar with him, according to the incident report viewed by the outlet.
Duncan and Hazel left the bar around 6:00 p.m., and he brought the dog to his nearby apartment. Duncan then returned to the bar and joked that he was going to hold Dixon’s dog for ransom.
Dixon then made his fingers into the shape of a gun and directed the gesture at Duncan’s head. “I’ll pop him,” Dixon told the bartender, according to security footage from the bar that was referenced in the incident report.
The friends and bartender laughed at the apparent joke, but Dixon kept good on his word and shot Duncan in the bathroom about an hour later.
After he shot his friend, Dixon exited the bathroom and laid down behind the bar and screamed, per the incident report.
Dixon then said to “call 911” and repeated, “I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry,” according to the incident report.
When Dixon was asked why he shot Duncan, he said, “He said he would not give my dog back.”
The bartender then responded that Duncan “was just joking” when he made the comment.
Duncan’s daughter was present at Dixon’s sentencing on Monday, and she opened up about how important her father was to their family.
“My dad always came home and he loved coming home to be there for my son’s football games,” Chinea Duncan said, according to The Keweenaw Report. “I will always cherish the way he called me mama and the love he showed us.”
Dixon also took a moment to speak and admitted he still doesn’t understand why he killed Duncan, according to The Keweenaw Report. “I thought I had woken up in another alternate universe,” he said. “I can’t explain what happened, but I’m not insane.”
At the time of his sentencing, Dixon had already served 24 months and 293 days behind bars.
