Gordon Lasley Jr.

Gordon Lasley Jr., 26, rural Tama, received life prison terms without the possibility of parole on Tuesday, March 25, in U.S. District Court in Cedar Rapids.

As the result of a jury trial on Dec.17, 2014, Lasley was found guilty of two counts second degree murder in the death of his parents, Gordon Lasley, Sr. and Kim Renee Lasley.

He was convicted of killing them WITH a machete in their home on the Meskwaki Settlement on Feb. 5, 2014.

The sentence was handed down by United States District Court Chief

Judge Linda R. Reade. The sentences are to be served consecutively.

According to a news release issued by U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Iowa, Lasley’s defense “unsuccessfully argued Lasley was insane at the time of the murders and should not be held criminally responsible for the murders.”

Lasley continues to be held in federal custody awaiting transfer to a federal prison.

The case was handled in U.S. District Court because of jurisdiction over certain criminal matters which occur in what is termed Indian Country.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys CJ Williams and Anthony Morfitt.

Investigation was conducted by the Meskwaki Nation Tribal Police, the Tama County Sheriff’s Office, the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.