Two mothers mourn after Mankato man pleads guilty to murder

MANKATO – Outside a Blue Earth County courtroom on Wednesday, the two mothers consoled each other: one the mother of a man who had just admitted to killing the husband of the other.

Moments earlier, Guenther Boone Jr., 18, admitted to shooting Darious Dashon Johnson, 31, both of Mankato..

“I didn’t mean to take him from his children,” Boone had told police, according to a charging document. He pleaded guilty Wednesday to a charge of second-degree intentional but unpremeditated murder.

Police arrested Boone in December. According to court documents, Boone told police he shot a man “execution style” in the early morning hours of Dec. 21.

Johnson’s family and friends in an obituary described him as someone who had married the love of his life a few months before the shooting.

“Darious will be remembered for the profound impact he had on the lives of those who loved him, his unwavering dedication to the family he built, his passion for music, his boundless humor, and his laughter that could light up even the darkest of rooms,” the obituary read.

His widow, Kira Johnson, said on Monday that she had reached out to Boone’s mother, Tanya Townsend, and that the two had connected.

“I’m a mother, too,” Johnson said. “From a mother’s perspective, if I were in her shoes, I would want to seek out forgiveness, too.”

Townsend, who attended the hearing, said she appreciated that Kira Johnson had spoken to her.

“We both feel similar pains, for different reasons,” Townsend said after the hearing. “The feeling is pain, and the way you deal with pain is the same.”

She said she wanted people to know that Boone, her middle child, was known as “Smiles” growing up.

In court, Boone admitted to getting into Johnson’s vehicle and shooting him.

According to police charging documents, Boone told interrogators that his plan was to rob Johnson that night.

“I didn’t mean to take him from his children,” Boone told police.

Police said they found Boone at his home and told him that they had two witnesses and security footage of the shooting. Boone first denied knowing anything about the death but then admitted to shooting Johnson, they said.

Officers said they found Boone’s .40-caliber P80 handgun after he told them where he had hidden it. They also said they found a spent .40-caliber shell casing in Johnson’s car.

As part of his plea deal, other counts against Boone were dropped. He had also been charged with first-degree murder and possessing a firearm without a serial number or a permit.

Boone is due back in court Aug. 18.