Bio

Vern Kills On Top was born in 1961 and was a member of the Northern Cheyenne community in southeastern Montana. Before the crime, he lived in Montana and had ties to the Northern Cheyenne Reservation area. He was unmarried and had no children at the time he was imprisoned.

Most of what is known about Kills On Top comes from court records connected to the 1987 death of John Martin Etchemendy Jr. Court documents show that he was part of a group involved in crimes that started in Miles City, Montana, and continued into Wyoming. After his conviction, Kills On Top was sentenced to death. However, his case was appealed for many years because of questions about his role in the killing.

The Montana Supreme Court later ruled that although he took part in the robbery and kidnapping, he was not present when Etchemendy was killed and did not personally cause the fatal injuries. Because of this decision, his death sentence was overturned and replaced with life imprisonment.

Murder Story

Shortly after midnight on October 17, 1987, Vern Kills On Top, his brother Lester Kills On Top, and several others met John Martin Etchemendy Jr. at a bar in Miles City, Montana. According to court testimony, the group offered to help Etchemendy find his car and convinced him to get into their vehicle. Instead of helping him, they drove away with him. During the trip, he was beaten and robbed, and his wallet and checks were taken.

The group then forced Etchemendy into the trunk of the car and drove him across state lines toward Wyoming. At one point, a woman traveling with the group escaped. The others continued the trip with Etchemendy still locked in the trunk.

Court records state that Vern Kills On Top later separated from the group near Gillette, Wyoming, and went to a bar. Lester Kills On Top and another man continued driving with the victim. Sometime afterward, Etchemendy was killed. His body was later found in a rural area south of Gillette. Investigators determined that the crimes included robbery, kidnapping, and murder. Vern and Lester Kills On Top were charged in Montana because much of the criminal activity took place there.

Prosecutors argued that Vern Kills On Top was responsible for the death because he participated in the robbery and kidnapping that led to the murder. A jury found him guilty of robbery, aggravated kidnapping, and deliberate homicide. On June 24, 1988, he was sentenced to death. Years later, the Montana Supreme Court reviewed the case. The court found that although Kills On Top had taken part in the robbery and kidnapping, he was not present when the victim was killed and did not inflict the fatal injuries.

Because of this ruling, his death sentence was canceled. He was resentenced to forty years for robbery, life imprisonment for deliberate homicide, and life imprisonment without parole for aggravated kidnapping. He remains in prison. The case is remembered in Montana because of the legal questions surrounding accomplice responsibility and the use of the death penalty.