Background: The mansion in Madison County, Kentucky, where the killing occurred on Feb. 22, 2022 (WKYT/YouTube). Inset left: Shannon Gilday (WDRB/YouTube). Inset right: Jordan Morgan (Oldham, Roberts & Powell Funeral Home).
A Kentucky man shot a woman 25 times in her mansion and left her to bleed out in his pursuit of her family's "doomsday bunker," a jury found.
Shannon Gilday, 27, was accused of murder and other charges in the death of 32-year-old Jordan Morgan.
On Thursday, a jury found him guilty but mentally ill of the charges of murder, burglary, and attempted murder, according to McClatchy News. This differs from being found not guilty by reason of insanity, as in this case, jurors determined Gilday is legally responsible for his crimes.
On the morning of Feb. 22, 2022, Gilday approached Morgan's home in Richmond, Kentucky. Morgan, who was working as an attorney when she was killed, was the daughter of a former state legislator, and they lived in a mansion complete with a massive "doomsday bunker" underneath.
It was this feature of the residence that attracted Gilday's attention and desire, investigators said. He was apparently worried about a nuclear attack and planned an invasion of the home for weeks.
That morning, the defendant used scaffolding to enter the mansion, as Law&Crime previously reported.
"He had prepared himself to force his way into the residence by any means necessary," Kentucky State Police Detective Camron Allen said weeks after the shooting. "He had done surveillance multiple times and had tried to access the bunker through a tunnel but was unable to do so … He told me he was willing to kill everyone inside the residence if necessary in order to access the bunker."
Gilday even reportedly studied the sleep schedules of the mansion's inhabitants before he attacked. He encountered Morgan, and prosecutors say he shot her more than 25 times and left her to bleed out.
"We also know Jordan was awake when she was shot," Kentucky Assistant Attorney General Todd Willard said, according to regional CBS affiliate WYMT, adding that Gilday fired his gun because he believed the woman would call 911. "And the defendant fired the weapon through the door upstairs to get inside, we also know because when he came inside Jordan said, 'Please don't.'"
Law enforcement responded to the home and pronounced Morgan dead. Gilday had escaped but reportedly returned to the scene and was then arrested.
On Tuesday, the jury is expected to deliberate on Gilday's sentence.