Evansville man sentenced to more than 100 years in prison after double killing

EVANSVILLE – An Evansville man has been sentenced to more than 100 years in prison after a Vanderburgh County jury found him guilty of two counts of murder last month.

John Cameron Parker will serve a total of 110 years behind bars for allegedly shooting and killing Michael Blankenship Jr., 31, and 37-year-old Mitchell Greathouse, Magistrate Judge Ryan Reed ruled Tuesday.

According to a Vanderburgh County Prosecutor's Office news release, Parker got 55 years for each killing, with the sentences to be served consecutively.

A friend found Blankenship and Greathouse dead in a home in the 2600 block of Mount Vernon Avenue on Oct. 22. In 911 audio obtained by the Courier & Press, the friend told dispatchers both men were "beyond help."

Parker was one of three men arrested. Caden Wayne Harms, 20, turned himself in a few days after the shootings and ultimately reached a plea agreement in May. He was sentenced to 45 years.

The third man – former Evansville 411 News owner Richard Dee Garrett – initially pleaded not guilty, but court records show him as having a "change of plea hearing" slated for Aug. 16. According to an affidavit filed in his case, he told police he served as the driver for Harms and Parker and said he believed they had come to the house to commit a robbery, not murder.

According to another affidavit, however, Harms later told police he and Parker planned on committing robbery and at least one killing all along. He said they hatched the plan before calling Garrett for a ride. He reportedly identified Parker as the gunman. He said he served as the lookout.

Police unwound the case thanks to a plethora of surveillance footage around the Mount Vernon Avenue home. On Oct. 21, police say an outside camera captured a white male in a red-hooded sweatshirt enter the house just after 7:50 p.m. through a door that led to Blankenship's room. About a minute later, the footage reportedly showed the man sprinting toward an alley.

Other neighborhood footage obtained by police reportedly captured a white passenger car idling nearby just before the shooting. Three men were inside, police wrote.

Investigators eventually tracked the car to Garrett. After obtaining a warrant, they searched the car and found "staining consistent with blood ... located within the vehicle," as well as walkie-talkies.

According to the affidavit, Garrett told police he'd picked Parker and Harms up from a residence on Mary Street after they asked him for a ride. As they headed toward the West Side, he said they stopped near a business so the two men could change clothes.

"He also reported they put masks and gloves on," the affidavit states.

They then parked along West Virginia Street, police said. The man in the red sweatshirt, who police later identified as Parker, reportedly exited the car with a gun in his hand and went inside. Garrett told investigators he heard gunshots "moments later."

According to Tuesday's news release, Harms and Parker went back to the Mary Street residence afterward and burned their clothes.

Parker was still housed in the Vanderburgh County Jail as of Tuesday evening, records show, but he'll serve his sentence within the Indiana Department of Corrections. According to court records, Parker plans to appeal the sentence. The court has already appointed him a public defender.

Blankenship's obituary stated that he had a passion for skateboarding, bike-riding, playing guitar, enjoying nature and spending time with loved ones. He had three children. Greathouse , meanwhile, loved to dance and take his son fishing.

This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Evansville man sentenced to more than 100 years in prison after double killing