Woman pleads guilty in '15 drive-by shooting

A 29-year-old New Iberia woman pleaded guilty last week in connection with a February 2015 drive-by shooting in Morgan City. In her plea deal, she also agreed to testify at her co-defendant’s trial and had charges against her dismissed in an Iberia Parish case, according to St. Mary Parish clerk of court records.
Kimberly Marie Thompson, 29, of New Iberia, pleaded guilty July 20 to the charge of attempted manslaughter. On Prosecutor Anthony Saleme’s motion, District Judge Keith Comeaux ordered five drug charges and a gun charge in an Iberia Parish case dismissed, court records stated. Thompson is set to be sentenced Oct. 24, and Comeaux stated the maximum amount of jail she could get is 15 years.
As part of Thompson’s plea agreement, she agreed to testify against her co-defendant, Kevin James Drexler, 33, of New Iberia, at his trial.
The district attorney had originally filed a bill of information charging Thompson with attempted first-degree murder. Prosecutors also charged Drexler with attempted first-degree murder and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
According to an affidavit, on Feb. 6, 2015, Morgan City police began an investigation into a drive-by shooting that occurred in the 5000 block of Railroad Avenue. Officers found shell casings in the roadway along with 11 bullet holes in the home.
Police located the victim in a home with a single, glancing gunshot wound to the head, the affidavit said. The victim was taken to Teche Regional Medical Center with what were later determined to be non-life threatening injuries.
A witness said that Drexler and his girlfriend, Thompson, were driving a maroon Ford Taurus that left the area heading toward Aycock Street. Thompson was driving while Drexler was in the back seat, the affidavit said.
Another witness, who had gotten into a fight with Drexler shortly before the shooting, said that he saw what appeared to be an air-soft style long gun inside the vehicle while the two were fighting. A different witness saw the vehicle slowly pull in front of the victim’s home, and then said she heard “a bunch of shots and the vehicle took off,” the affidavit stated.
The victim stated that he was sitting on his couch eating when he heard a bang. He squatted down and then realized he had been shot. The victim had a 1-inch laceration to the left side of his head above his ear.
Police located Drexler in the Morgan City jail after learning he had turned himself in on an unrelated charge. Drexler’s hands and clothing tested positive for gunshot residue. Drexler denied having fired or handling a gun and denied involvement in the shooting, the affidavit stated.
The Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office located a maroon Ford Taurus parked in front of Drexler’s home in New Iberia. Investigators executed a search warrant at Drexler’s home, and Thompson answered the door.
In an interview with police, Thompson initially denied having been in the area at the time of the shooting. Thompson stated that the Ford Taurus parked in front of her home was a rental car and said the vehicle didn’t belong to her.
Thompson said then that Drexler and another man had gotten into a fight in Morgan City. She said Drexler and Thompson then left the area and then went to Verdunville. Thompson then stated that the couple returned to Morgan City and went to the 5000 block of Railroad Avenue.
Thompson thought they were returning to the area to fight the man Drexler had been involved in a fight with earlier the same day.
Thompson and Drexler then drove in front of a home in the 5000 block of Railroad Avenue when Thompson heard Drexler fire multiple shots from the back seat. Thompson said that her kids were sitting beside Drexler in the car at the time of the shooting, the affidavit stated.
She stated that she then fled the area through Amelia and returned to Verdunville.
On Monday, Comeaux granted Saleme’s motion for the district attorney’s office to recuse itself from further handling of the case because Thompson’s former attorney now works as a prosecutor for the district attorney’s office. The judge assigned the state Attorney General’s office to appoint a prosecutor to handle the case.
Thompson was released on $20,000 bail pending her sentencing hearing Oct. 24. Drexler’s trial is also set for Oct. 24.