Trials
A Polk County court sentenced Bryson Francka to 15 years in the fatal Bolivar robbery that killed Lyman Taylor.
KY3 and Ozarks First reported that on Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2026, Bryson Francka of Bolivar, Missouri, was sentenced to 15 years after pleading guilty to second-degree murder and stealing in a December 2025 robbery in which Lyman Taylor was struck and killed by a vehicle on South 77th Road.
By Crime Talk Network Staff Writer ·
Wednesday's sentence closes Francka's case on a plea. Co-defendant Kaidan Lamb still faces second-degree murder, robbery, leaving the scene, and tampering counts, with a court date the following Wednesday.
KY3 reported that on Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2026, Bryson Francka of Bolivar, Missouri, was sentenced to 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to second-degree murder and stealing in connection with a December 2025 robbery that ended with Lyman Taylor being hit and killed by a vehicle. Ozarks First also covered the Polk County sentencing. Coverage said the murder-during-a-felony and vehicle-theft terms run concurrently and that a related vehicle-tampering count was dismissed.
According to KY3, the Polk County Sheriff's Office found Taylor last December on South 77th Road. Prosecutors said the robbery ended when Taylor was run over. Co-defendant Kaidan Lamb remains charged with second-degree murder, robbery, leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death, and tampering with a motor vehicle, KY3 reported, and was scheduled to appear in court the Wednesday after Francka's sentencing.
Francka's guilty plea and 15-year sentence are the court's judgment on the counts he admitted. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Lamb has not been convicted on the remaining charges and retains the presumption of innocence.
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