Springfield man who avoided murder charge due to the death of a witness is back in jail

The death of a key witness in James Lee Young's murder case led to his fortuitous release from a Greene County jail cell.

Four months later, Young is behind bars again.

Springfield police believe Young recently stole a motorcycle and built enough evidence for prosecutors to charge the 31-year-old on Monday with first-degree vehicle tampering.

Young, who remained jailed Thursday on $10,000 bond, was allegedly in possession of a 2007 Honda CBR that had been reported stolen. The motorcycle had been painted white and black and had been wired with an ignition bypass switch.

The man's lengthy criminal history includes previous vehicle tampering charges, but Young, who police said is a gang member, was able to evade his most serious criminal charge: second-degree murder.

Young was accused of tracking down his ex-girlfriend, Trisha Gulick, at a friend's home in March 2022 after sending her several threatening text messages. Young and his friends attempted to force entry and gunfire ensued between a man in the home and Young's group, according to a police report. Gulick's friend Johnny Hipol was killed.

It was unclear in the police report if the bullet that killed Hipol was allegedly fired by Young or someone else. Young was charged with second-degree murder under the Missouri law that holds an alleged criminal culpable if someone dies during the commission of a felony (in this case, burglary for going into the home).

More: A man accused of murder had his case dismissed. Why? A key witness died in a car crash

Gulick, who appeared to be the prosecution's primary witness in the case, was killed last summer in a Springfield auto accident, two months before Young's scheduled murder trial.

With Hipol and Gulick dead, and others in the police report appearing to have not given clear a description of who killed Hipol in the exchange of gunfire, the burden of proof would have been difficult to meet. He was released after more than a year in jail awaiting trial.

Young has two previous prison stints and has "an exceedingly and extensive violent criminal history dating back to 2010" according to Monday's police report that referenced his background.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: James Young, who avoided murder charge when witness died, back in jail