A judge sentenced a Parsons man to 20 years in prison on Monday for the February 2021 fatal shooting of Levi Kendricks.
A Labette County jury convicted Malcolm M. Odom, 33, of voluntary manslaughter in November 2023.
Odom was convicted in the death of Levi Kendricks on Feb. 11, 2021, in the parking area of the Mendota Creek Apartments. The original charge was second-degree murder. Odom was also convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm, a felony, and criminal use of a weapon, a misdemeanor.
Kendricks swung at Odom on that frigid morning during the polar vortex that set low-temperature records across the central U.S. But Kendricks missed and Odom retrieved a handgun from the right pocket of his Raiders’ jacket and fired a bullet into Kendricks’ chest.
Odom testified that he thought he saw something in Kendricks’ hand (something metallic) as Kendricks swung at him and quickly decided to use the gun. Kendricks carried a lanyard that had three gold keys attached to it. The chain that held the keys broke, which was what law enforcement found near Kendricks.
The 9mm bullet grazed Kendricks’ heart and other organs. Kendricks and Odom had a disagreement allegedly after Odom swung at Kendricks’ father the month before. Odom denied this.
Odom’s attorney Cline Boone asked for a shorter prison term for his client, 10 years instead of 20. Judge Steven A. Stockard denied this request. However, Stockard found that Kendricks’ acting as the aggressor in the incident would mitigate the sentence imposed.
Kendricks’ mother and grandmother made statements before sentencing. Michelle Masoner, Levi’s mother, said Levi was the second son that she had to say goodbye to. She lost her son, C.J. Reece, at age 5. He was killed when struck by a vehicle while crossing a road to board a school bus with its sign out. The driver who struck Reece was charged with involuntary manslaughter. The disposition of the case is unknown, but she died seven years later at age 85.
She said she’s never been blind to who her children were, but Levi was protective of family and her. She said words seem inadequate to describe what he meant to her. She misses hugging him and being with him. She wanted Odom to get a life sentence, but she knew that was not possible. She feared that he would do the same thing to another person if released. Pam Masoner, Levi’s grandmother, said she was suspicious of Odom’s version of events from the night of the shooting. He was wandering around Mendota Creek Apartments, where he was not supposed to be because of a previous no trespass order. He was carrying a gun he was not supposed to have because of previous convictions for violent felonies. Odom was walking near Levi’s apartment that night.
“I find it highly suspicious,” she said. Judge Stockard found Kendricks’ aggression in the case to be a mitigating factor. Instead of sentencing Odom to the maximum, 247 months, Stockard sentenced him to the standard 233 months for voluntary manslaughter. Odom has a criminal history score of A given his record that contains violent felonies. The judge also sentenced him to an additional 8 months for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The misdemeanor charge was to be served concurrently as was jail time imposed in a previous misdemeanor case.
Odom received credit for more than 1,300 days he’s been in jail waiting for his case to be tried and completed.
After his release from prison, Odom will be on three years of parole supervision and will have to register as a violent offender for 15 years.
