Springfield man gets 20 years for 2014 murder

A Springfield man who was charged with murder when he was 16 years old was sentenced last week to 20 years in prison.

Kaleb Moore, 18, was sentenced Friday after he pleaded guilty in June to second-degree murder in connection with the February 2014 killing of Curtis Payne, 31.

Moore will have to serve 17 years before he is eligible for parole.

Police say Moore and two others — Jeremiah Devaliti and Tyler Keithley — forced their way into a home at 2357 S. Dollison Ave. in Springfield on Feb. 11, 2014, with the intent to "beat up" Payne.

Kearstain Sleeth, who is friends with the other suspects, had allegedly told them that Payne had previously assaulted her.

Police say the three males confronted Payne in his bedroom and Keithley struck Payne with a .22-caliber gun.

Documents say Moore, 16 years old at the time, fired first.

Moore shot Payne multiple times with a .380 handgun, according to the documents, and Devaliti shot Payne once with a shotgun.

Sleeth allegedly drove the three males to the home.

After the shooting, police say, the suspects dismantled the guns and buried them in a wooded area.

Moore was tried as an adult.

Moore's attorney Kristin Jones said it was not her client's intent to shoot and kill Payne when he first entered the home.

Jones asked that Moore be sentenced to 15 years in prison, but she said she understood Judge Thomas Mountjoy's decision to give Moore 20 years.

Devaliti pleaded guilty to murder in March, and was also sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Keithley and Sleeth have been charged with murder, and their cases are moving toward trial.