“We had a lot of testimony speaking to how great Jeremey was and how helpful he was,” she said. “We also had the arrest and booking sheet to look at. It was one of the things they said set Shannon Kepler off about him, but … it was some years prior to the (shooting) happening, and I think we all kind of agreed that a lot can change in four years. Whether it does or doesn’t, you can’t rule out the potential for people trying to change.”

Kepler said he drove to Lake’s home to notify his daughter of his belief that Lake was dangerous for her, which led to the fatal altercation. However, prosecutors countered that his statements were contrary to evidence that shows Kepler made no significant attempt to find Lisa after her arrival at the shelter until he became aware that she was involved with a boy.

O’Carroll suggested that Lake’s acquaintance Josh Mills took a gun and disposed of it before police arrived. Mills denied having done so, saying he ran to Lake’s body to try to save his life using medical training he had learned in the military.

During closing arguments, the state said the only person who claims that Lake had a gun was the man facing the possibility of life imprisonment for killing him.