SIOUX FALLS — A Sioux Falls man with a history of violence has pleaded not guilty to all charges in connection with a downtown shooting that left one man dead.
In a Monday, April court appearance, 39-year-old Edward Brinkley pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder, first-degree manslaughter and possession of a firearm after a violent crime conviction. He also denied being labeled by the state as a habitual violent offender.
The charges stem from an incident shortly after 2:15 a.m. Saturday, March 16, when police in Sioux Falls were called to an apartment complex at 232 E. 12th Street for an unknown problem. Arriving officers quickly located 28-year-old Richard Sowers in a hallway who said he had been shot thrice, but couldn’t identify a suspect.
Sowers was taken to a Sioux Falls hospital for treatment, where he died.
A black ball cap was recovered from the scene.
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Court documents say a tenant in the building had heard “fighting” from within the building, and had located Sowers lying in the hallway. He told police he observed a man matching Brinkley’s description “quickly” leaving the scene.
A review of video footage from Tommy Jack’s Pub, located next door to the apartment, showed Sowers leaving the bar with two women. Brinkley allegedly left Tommy Jack’s less than 20 minutes later wearing a black ball cap and heading in the direction of the apartment complex.
Surveillance footage reportedly showed Brinkely leaving the apartment complex where Sowers was shot, no longer wearing the back ball cap.
Police say the black ball cap recovered at the scene of the shooting was labeled “JL BEERS,” which was reportedly Brinkley’s workplace. A separate witness told police she remembered bumping into Brinkley in the apartment’s hallway, and later identified him in a photo lineup.
Authorities later obtained a warrant for Brinkley’s arrest, and he was taken into custody two days after the shooting near the intersection of 10th Street and Cliff Avenue.
He’s currently being held at the Minnehaha County Jail on a $1,002,500 bond. A jury trial has been scheduled to begin in July.
If convicted of second-degree murder, Brinkley would be sentenced to serve a mandatory minimum of life in prison.
A history of violent convictions
According to court records in Minnesota and South Dakota, Brinkley has a long history of convictions involving violence and sex crimes stretching as far back as 2005.
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In April 2020, Brinkley was convicted of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in connection with an August 2018 assault at a Sioux Falls bar. Authorities say Brinkley was removed from PAve and used a pocket knife to slash a bar employee.
Upon his conviction, more than 15 years of prison and jail time were suspended, and he was ordered to serve probation until April 2025. If convicted of a charge in connection with Sowers’ death, an additional sentence could be tacked on as a result of violating probation.
The bulk of Brinkley’s convictions come from Minnesota, where court records indicate he has eight felony convictions since February 2005.
Those convictions include two for felony domestic assault, two for failure to re-register as a sex offender and one each for kidnapping, attempted robbery, terroristic threats, possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and violation of a no-contact order.
Details of his convictions in Minnesota are unclear, as case files for the state’s criminal records before 2013 are not widely available online.
It’s unclear whether any conviction related to Sowers’ death would affect any existing probation status in Minnesota.
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