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| Inmates accused of killing guard |
| By rapidcityjournal.com |
| Published: 04/13/2011 |
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The two men accused of killing a correctional officer during an escape attempt at the South Dakota State Penitentiary Tuesday should face the death penalty, according to Meade County State's Attorney Jesse Sondreal. Rodney Berget, 48, and Eric Robert, 48, are accused of killing corrections officer Ronald Johnson, 63. Sondreal prosecuted both men for kidnapping in Meade County. "Given their history and character, there's no rehabilitating these two," Sondreal said. "If this isn't a death penalty style case, I haven't seen it." Berget is serving two life sentences - one for attempted first-degree murder from Lawrence County and one from Meade County for kidnapping. Robert was sentenced to 80 years in prison in 2005 for kidnapping. Berget, who is from Aberdeen, has an extensive criminal history. He was given his two life sentences in 2003. Berget pleaded guilty to attempted first-degree murder for shooting his ex-girlfriend and her boyfriend at a home in Lead. Both survived the shooting. He also pleaded guilty to kidnapping a 20-year-old convenience store clerk in Sturgis. After the Lead shooting, Berget fled in a stolen vehicle, taking the convenience store clerk hostage when he went through Sturgis. Berget was arrested near Midland only after South Dakota Highway Patrol troopers used spikes to flatten the wheels of the car. The hostage escaped, but troopers spent four hours negotiating with Berget before he surrendered. Tuesday's escape attempt was not the first for Berget. He was one of five inmates who broke out of the penitentiary in 1987, where he was serving a six-year sentence for grand theft and a consecutive six-year sentence for a previous escape. Robert pleaded guilty to kidnapping in 2005 as part of a plea bargain. He faced several charges after abducting an 18-year-old woman. A Wisconsin native, Robert was living in the Piedmont area at the time. Robert impersonated a police officer when he pulled the woman's car over near Black Hawk, according to Sondreal. He forced the woman into the trunk of the car, but missed a cell phone in her pocket. The victim was able to call for help. Sondreal said investigators theorized that Robert left the woman to move his vehicle, intending to come back for the victim and her car. Robert managed to change his appearance before he was arrested, Sondreal said. Read More. |
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