Death penalty still possible for defendant in Jefferson City murder case

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Jefferson City man accused of stabbing the mother of his child to death had a plea deal entered at a hearing Thursday that ruled he still faces the death penalty.

Sergio L. Sayles, 36, was charged with first-degree murder, armed criminal action, tampering with evidence and two misdemeanors – second-degree stalking and second-degree harassment – in connection with the death of Jasmine King in April 2023. Later that month, Cole County's top prosecutor filed a motion seeking the death penalty.

Sayles' defense attorneys responded with a motion to declare Missouri's death penalty unconstitutional. On Thursday, they argued before a judge that the death penalty contains racial and gender bias. They cited several studies, including one that says blacks who kill whites are four times more likely to be charged with capital crimes than whites who kill blacks.

Prosecutors responded Thursday that the state must bear the burden of the law, not the statistics. Judge Brouck Jacobs denied the defense's motion, saying the law was already “well established” and he would not declare it unconstitutional.

The defense also moved to strike the first aggregator listed in the notice of intent, which stated that Sayles had a previous conviction for aggravated assault, having been found guilty of aggravated assault in Champaign County, Illinois, in 1999. The defense argued that they could not use his criminal history as a minor as a reason he was “dangerous.” That motion was granted.

According to the probable cause statement, police found the woman, Jasmine King, dead in her home in the 300 block of West Ashley Street on April 10 after King's family called police for a wellness check. Sayles gave conflicting accounts of his whereabouts Monday afternoon and denied killing King, according to the statement.

Sayles and King have a toddler together.

Witness statements and surveillance video led Sayles to the crime scene, the statement said. Police also found the murder weapon and some of Sayles' belongings in a garbage bag in McClung Park, where surveillance cameras captured Sayles sitting in his vehicle around the time of King's death, the statement said.

Sayles was previously charged with first-degree harassment in 2021 and first-degree stalking in 2022.

Sayles will have a status hearing in Cole County District Court on Tuesday, September 10, at 2:30 p.m.