A Big Piney man pleaded guilty Wednesday to killing another man with a bow and arrow in February, then riddling his scalp with BBs.
Rowan Littauer could face between 75 years and life in prison if Sublette County District Court Judge Kate McKay accepts his plea agreement at his later sentencing, set for Feb. 19.
On Wednesday in Pinedale, Littauer answered a series of McKay’s questions about whether he understood he had a right to plead not guilty and go to trial. He then he gave a response of “guilty your honor” to the two charges of second-degree murder and mutilation of a dead body.
The charges stem from the Feb. 1-2 murder of 23-year-old Dakota Farley.
Court documents say Littauer and his friend Orion Schlesinger walked more than a mile the night of Feb. 1, to Farley’s home in Big Piney. There, Littauer shot Farley through the arm, aorta and into his trachea, killing him, the case affidavit says.
Court documents say Littauer shot Farley a second time, then riddled his scalp with BBs from a BB gun — later describing what he called his “felony” in a text message to a female high school student.
Both Littauer and Schlesinger have now pleaded guilty to different variations of second-degree murder.
Schlesinger could be sentenced to between 54 years and life in prison under his plea agreement.
Often defendants pleading guilty give confessions in court. For Littauer’s hearing Wednesday, Sublette County Attorney Clayton Melinkovich offered the “factual basis” or account of the crime, instead of Littauer.
Melinkovich emphasized that Farley was living alone, and this was a great accomplishment for him. The home was his “first home as an autistic adult, (and he was) so proud to be able to pay his own bills and take care of himself.”
Melinkovich also said that after Schlesinger and Littauer treated the murder outing as an “adventure.” They shot a selfie in which they each wore “a big, toothy grin,” he said.
Littauer’s public defense attorney Elisabeth Trefonas said Melinkovich’s factual basis assumed the character of a sentencing argument, rather than a simple walk through the elements of the crime.
She said she and Littauer reserve their objection to that for sentencing, and will offer counter-argument, or “mitigation” at that proceeding.
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
