AURORA | An Aurora man facing a murder charge for allegedly stabbing his stepfather to death and taking a Snapchat video of his body changed his plea to not guilty by reason of insanity in Arapahoe County District Court Thursday.
Aurora Police arrested Nickolas Khalil Vinson, 20, on the evening of Dec. 14, 2017 shortly after officers responded to a report of a stabbing at a home in the 2700 block of South Rifle Street. Vinson later admitted to police that he stabbed his stepfather, 50-year-old Oscar Lemar Owensby, in the neck because he was expecting Owensby to hit him, according to an arrest affidavit. The two had been arguing about household chores and money earlier in the day.
Owensby died as a result of his injuries at a local hospital shortly after the attack, police said. He was reportedly working as a golf instructor and bartender at the Family Sports Center with South Suburban Parks and Recreation in Centennial, according to a LinkedIn page for Owensby.
In the moments after the stabbing, Vinson took a video of Owensby lying on the floor, according to police. Vinson’s mother also appeared in the video, crouching near him and screaming.
In the video, which police said Vinson posted to Snapchat, he can be heard saying: “I killed him.”
Vinson had originally pleaded not guilty without claiming insanity at his arraignment in August.
At a status conference Thursday morning, the court ordered Vinson to undergo a mental health evaluation. The case was set to go to trial in January, but those dates have been postponed until the evaluation is complete, according to Vikki Migoya, spokeswoman for the 18th Judicial District Attorney’s Office.
Vinson has been charged with one count of first-degree murder with a pair of sentence enhancers.
Sentinel Staff Writer Brandon Johansson contributed to this story.