Sebastin O'Brien, the 23-year-old Little Sioux man who was charged with murder in the first degree last spring, was found guilty on Friday.
The victim of the killing was Douglas Manley, 53, of Missouri Valley. A jury of O'Brien's peers deliberated for less than three hours before reaching the verdict.
“We extend our deepest gratitude to the jury for their conscientious service and for upholding justice in this case,” Harrison County Attorney Sarah Delanty said in a statement to the Reporter.
The murder charge came after an investigation due to a vehicle rollover south of Modale on April 21, 2024.
O'Brien, who had been operating the vehicle, became combative with deputies who had responded to the crash, and was placed in custody. After further investigation, it was found that O'Brien was not the owner of the vehicle involved in the rollover.
Harrison County deputies found the owner, later identified as Manley, deceased inside his residence in rural Harrison County, according to an affidavit from the initial incident.
The affidavit also stated that O'Brien was intoxicated and “made unsolicited statements indicating he had assaulted the owner of the truck.”
Law enforcement went to Manley's residence, where they found tire tracks giving the impression someone had left in a hurry, and blood was also smeared on the front door window. The front door also appeared to have been forced open.
More blood was found inside after entering the entering the home, and Manley was then found deceased due to what appeared to be several blunt force facial and head injuries.
Three days later, the Iowa Office of the State Medical Examiner officially ruled Manley's death as a homicide caused by blunt force trauma.
O'Brien told investigators that Manley deserved it because he had been trafficking children in Blair, Neb., and that Manley allegedly raped O’Brien earlier in the day, according to the initial affidavit.
Following his arrest, O'Brien called his mother and told her Manley deserved to die because he had been molesting someone.
“During his arrest, Mr. O'Brien was combative and assaulted officers,” Delanty said. “Furthermore, his subsequent disparaging remarks and false allegations against Mr. Manley were disproven during the investigation and trial, with his own legal team acknowledging their inaccuracy.”
This marks the first guilty murder verdict in Harrison County since the 2020 killing of Caleb Solberg of Moorhead by Kristofer Erlbacher of Woodbine.
“During the trial, it was established that Mr. Manley, who generously provided shelter to Mr. O'Brien during a time of need, fell victim to a brutal and prolonged attack while assisting with moving furniture,” Delanty said. “Evidence and testimony confirmed that Mr. O'Brien became violently upset, knocking Mr. Manley to the floor and beating him to death with at least two boards. Notably, Mr. O'Brien sustained no injuries during the assault.”
O'Brien is scheduled to be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on April 1. He also has a charge of assault on persons in certain occupations causing bodily injury, an aggravated misdemeanor, stemming from a Jan. 15 incident. A plea of not guilty was filed on Feb. 12.
“This conviction represents a measure of justice for the family and friends of Douglas Manley and reaffirms our community’s commitment to holding violent offenders accountable,” Delanty said.
