MUNCIE — A Muncie man who fatally shot his cousin was sentenced on Monday, Aug. 3, to 35 years in prison.
Delaware Circuit Court 4 Judge John Feick on June 2 found Kenneth Burden, 59, guilty of voluntary manslaughter in the January 2022 slaying of 52-year-old Timothy Lee Hahn.
Burden had been charged with murder in the homicide, but after a two-day bench trial — in which a judge, not a jury renders a verdict — Feick found him guilty of the lesser charge, a Level 2 felony carrying up to 30 years in prison.
The judge — who also found that Burden was a habitual offender, leading to a longer prison term — imposed the 35-year sentence at a Monday morning hearing.
A witness told police the men arrived at the same home, in the 1500 block of South Rochester Avenue, a few minutes apart.
Hahn reportedly shoved Burden off a porch, authorities said, and a short time later, Burden shot Hahn in the chest with a handgun.
Emergency personnel found the victim outside and tried to resuscitate him.
Defense attorney Robert Summerfield maintained his client had acted in self defense.
Deputy prosecutors Michael Bozoian and Lexi Starost said nothing indicated Hahn was continuing to menace his cousin when he was gunned down.
“In this case, the only person who knows what happened is the defendant,” Feick said when returning the guilty verdict.
Witnesses said Hahn and Burden had been feuding in the weeks before the homicide.
According to court records, Burden has at least four prior convictions for burglary and one for armed robbery.
After Monday’s hearing, Delaware County Prosecutor Eric Hoffman said “another violentrepeat offender has been taken off the streets by the hard work of the Muncie Police Department and the Delaware County prosecutor’s office.”
Douglas Walker is a news reporter at The Star Press. Contact him at 765-213-5851 or at dwalker@muncie.gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Man gets 35 years for killing cousin in Muncie shooting
Reporting by Douglas Walker, Muncie Star Press / Muncie Star Press
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By Douglas Walker, Muncie Star Press | USA TODAY Network
