Murder trial continues for man accused of killing Knox County deputy
By Daniel Kim
A Knox County deputy was putting stop sticks down to stop a driver whose car struck and killed him.
Now Daylon Richardson, 22, charged with hitting and killing Knox County Deputy Nick Weist on April 29, 2022, is on trial for the deputy’s death. He appeared in Henry County Court on Tuesday to face two counts of murder, unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon and aggravated fleeing and eluding.
Our Quad Cities News was in the courtroom, where the deputy’s friends and family gathered.
This case may likely center on intent, according to Richardson’s attorney. Prosecutors are charging Richardson with murder. The defense is arguing Richardson never intended to kill Weist.
“After all the testimony and the evidence, I’m going to ask you to find Daylon Richardson guilty of murdering Nicholas Weist,” said State’s Attorney Catherine Runty.
“He’s just trying to get away and he did something stupid. What he did was stupid. Not criminal, stupid,” said Defense Attorney Bruce Carmen.
Prosecutors introduced police body cam footage and police radio calls from the day Weist was killed. Two law enforcement officers described the radio calls and the events leading up to the tragedy.
“Was deputy Weist ever ordered to participate in this pursuit?” the judge asked. “I directed him to deploy the stop sticks,” said Lt. Carl Kraemer.
“I announced over the radio there was an officer down and then I drove into the field after the suspect,” said Galesburg Police Officer Jared Tapscott. “You drove into the field to attempt to apprehend the suspect,” the judge asked. “That’s correct, yes,” Tapscott responded.
Tapscott described going up to the deputy after he was hit by the car. “I checked him for signs of life,” said Tapscott. “I observed that he had sustained significant trauma to his body. I checked his pulse in two different locations and found he was deceased.”
The trial is expected to last until Friday. Our Quad Cities News will be in the courtroom.
