Omaha man sentenced to life in prison for shooting, killing man in Lincoln

Deontae Rush(Madison Pitsch)
Published: Jan. 30, 2023 at 3:45 PM CST

LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) - Deontae Rush, 27 of Omaha, was sentenced to life in prison Monday for shooting and killing a Lincoln man in 2021 in what was outlined in court as a robbery gone wrong.

He was found guilty of first-degree murder and use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony back in November of 2022.

On top of the life sentence, Rush was also handed down an additional sentence of 25 to 35 years on felony weapons charges.

Rush fired the shot that killed James Shekie, 33, during a break-in and robbery of Shekie’s north Lincoln home during the early morning hours of Feb. 23, 2021. The robbery was an attempt to steal drugs from the home.

Also arrested in connection to the crime were Anna Feilen and her brother, Marques Moten for conspiracy to commit robbery. Court documents indicated that Rush was Feilen’s ex-boyfriend.

The initial trial for Rush was delayed due to a COVID-19 outbreak in the courtroom and resulted in a mistrial. During that trial, Rush’s defense argued that he wasn’t even in Lincoln at the time of the shooting.