On Thursday afternoon, in a packed Johnson County courtroom, a jury found Andrea Rene Cothran, 35, of Goodlettsville, Tennessee, guilty of murder for the 2023 killing of Fairway Police Ofc. Jonah Oswald.

A 12-person jury arrived at its verdict after a seven-day trial, including several days’ worth of testimony from witnesses.

Cothran faced the murder charges even though she herself did not fire the shot that killed Oswald. Cothran’s public defender, Carissa Leffler, appeared to wipe tears from Cothran’s face as the verdict was read.

The verdict comes nearly three years after the Aug. 6, 2023, standoff inside the restrooms at a QuikTrip on Lamar Avenue in Mission that resulted in Oswald’s death.

Shannon Wayne Marshall, 40, shot Oswald in the head as officers tried to take him into custody. Marshall was shot and killed by a Kansas Highway Patrol trooper during the exchange of gunfire. Oswald died the following day from his injuries.

Hundreds mourned Oswald at a parade and vigil that same week. A Fairway resident started a blue ribbon parade around the city and other parts of northeastern Johnson County to show support for Oswald.

Four months later, Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe determined that Kansas Highway Patrol Trooper Derek Keyser and then Mission Police Officer Tyler Eddings were justified in opening fire at Marshall. They face no charges.

In a Friday afternoon statement, Fairway Police Chief J.P. Thurlo said the police department is “incredibly thankful for the continued support shown by our community.”

“While no verdict can ever undo the pain of losing Officer Oswald, we are grateful to see justice carried out through the judicial process,” Thurlo said. “Jonah was one of the finest officers to serve this department, and his loss continues to be deeply felt by our agency and the entire Fairway community.”

A member of Oswald’s family declined to comment for this story.

Oswald died from gunshot injuries

On Aug. 6, 2023, surveillance camera footage spotted Marshall and Cothran stealing a Jeep Grand Cherokee from a QuikTrip parking lot in Lenexa.

Cothran ended up in the driver’s seat of that Jeep Grand Cherokee, driving northbound on I-35 before crashing near the Lamar Avenue exit in Mission.

The pair ran into a nearby QuikTrip, barricading themselves in the men’s and women’s restrooms, respectively.

Cothran was removed from the women’s restroom by a Kansas Highway Patrol trooper and a Lenexa police officer, even as the standoff with Marshall in the men’s restroom continued.

Then, Marshall, from inside a stall in the men’s bathroom, opened fire at police officers, including a gunshot that hit Oswald in the head.

A breakdown of the verdict on all eight counts

The jury arrived at its verdict this week, less than 24 hours after closing statements.

Cothran was found guilty of the most serious charge she faced, felony murder, and could spend the rest of her life in prison for that, with the possibility of parole after 25 years, according to state statute.

She was found guilty of four other charges, including battery of a law enforcement officer, fleeing law enforcement, theft of less than $25,000 and reckless driving.

The jury acquitted her of several other charges, most notably possession of a weapon and two other felony theft charges.

“As if she committed it herself” vs. “She’s not a murderer”

Over the course of multiple days of the trial, prosecutors portrayed Cothran as a willing and knowing partner in Marshall’s crimes. That even though Cothran herself was in handcuffs when Marshall shot Oswald, she was just as liable for Oswald’s death.

During closing statements on Wednesday afternoon, Chief Deputy District Attorney Chris McMullin argued that Cothran knew Marshall had a gun.

He pointed to the evidence showing and witnesses testifying that there is a high likelihood her DNA — not necessarily fingerprints — is on the weapon that killed Oswald.

“(It’s) as if she had committed [Oswald’s killing] herself,” McMullin said during closing arguments.

John Francis, a Sen. Robert J. Dole professor of law at Washburn University in Topeka, told the Post in an interview earlier this month before the trial that the theory of “accomplice liability” also appeared to be at play in Cothran’s charges.

“Basically, what that says is, when two people are acting together in a criminal undertaking, they each become responsible for the actions of the other,” Francis said.

Cothran’s defense played up the fact that Cothran herself did not pull the trigger and fire the shot that killed Oswald.

Evan O’Brien, one of Cothran’s two public defenders, argued during closing statements that even if the jury found her guilty of theft, aggravated battery and fleeing and eluding officers, that does “not automatically (make her) responsible for every act another person commits.”

O’Brien argued that there is “no evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that Andrea Cothran knew Shannon Marshall had a gun.” He also argued that there was no evidence of her fingerprints on the gun that killed Oswald and that her DNA on the gun didn’t mean she touched the weapon, he said.

O’Brien argued that Oswald’s death happened because of “Shannon Marshall’s independent actions … that Andrea Cothran didn’t know about.”

“She’s not a murderer,” O’Brien said.

Ultimately, the jury found Cothran guilty of felony murder, which, in Kansas, is when a murder occurs “in the commission of an attempt to commit or flight from any inherently dangerous felony,” according to K.S.A. 21-5402.

A hearing for a motion for new trial has been set

• Online court records now show Cothran’s sentencing hearing set for 10 a.m. on July 8, in the Division 15 courtroom of Judge Michael P. Joyce of Division 15 at Johnson County District Court.
• Neither representatives for the prosecution nor the defense attorneys responded to the Post’s request for comment for this story at the time of publication.

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