North Central District Court Judge Todd Cresap sentenced Travis McDermott, 41, Minot, to serve 10 years with the DOCR on the first count of manslaughter, to first serve seven years with credit for 409 days already served plus good time. For the count of reckless endangerment, McDermott was sentenced to serve a concurrent sentence of five years, with requirements to complete three years of supervised probation upon his release.

McDermott also was required to have no contact with Sletto’s family members, including his children, and to pay $51,583.48 in restitution to the Sletto family for funeral and labor costs incurred after his death and to The Original Bar for biohazard cleanup and new carpeting. McDermott also was assessed $775 in court costs and fees.

Cresap handed down the sentences for the two felonies on McDermott following emotional testimony from Sletto’s mother and girlfriend and a tearful statement from McDermott himself.

Greyson Sletto’s mother, Ronilda Sletto, spoke of the devastating impact her son’s death has had on his loved ones and friends, which she said was evident based on the more than 300 people who attended his funeral. Sletto was a fifth generation farmer who lived near and worked with his parents on the family farm near Willow City.

Ronilda Sletto composes herself as she provides a victim impact statement at the sentencing of Travis McDermott on Monday. McDermott was convicted in January on a count of manslaughter and reckless endangerment in the shooting death of Sletto’s son at a Minot bar in May 2023.

Ronilda Sletto said she and her husband, Gregory, had to retire and auction off their equipment after Greyson’s death to care for his three young sons for whom he was the sole provider. Deputy State’s Attorney Tiffany Sorgen noted later that Ronilda Sletto learned her son was shot and killed on Mother’s Day.

“The boys are in therapy and are still afraid the man who killed their dad will find them,” Ronilda Sletto said. “There is not a day that goes by without profound sadness, anguish and anger that we feel for the loss of our son. There is no way that Greyson Sletto’s death will ever be justified.”

Greyson’s girlfriend Ciarra Wald echoed the statements regarding the trauma she and many others have experienced in the wake of the shooting, calling the altercation that precipitated the shooting “preventable.” Wald asked the court for the maximum sentence for McDermott, saying, “I’ll never be the same again.”

“Greyson did not deserve this. I’m asking this court for the maximum sentence. It’s what this poor excuse for this man deserves. It’s justice for Greyson and all of us who lost him,” Wald said.

As Sorgen provided her sentencing recommendation, she called attention to the danger and panic inflicted on the bystanders at The Original Bar in the early morning of May 14, 2023, saying the staff of the establishment have undergone therapy for the trauma they experienced that night. Sorgen also highlighted aspects of McDermott’s testimony at trial and in the presentence investigation she said illustrated a severe lack of remorse and accountability for his actions. Sorgen described McDermott as “sanguine and unremorseful,” saying that he avoided saying his victim’s name during his testimony and interviews.

“It is evident the defendant still does not believe he’s done anything wrong. When asked for what other choices he could have made, he said, ‘I guess I could have talked things down before letting fear get in the way,'” Sorgen said. “The defendant’s only expression of remorse is for the predicament which he now finds himself. Not once during any of these interviews did he really express any degree of remorse for what happened to Greyson or his loved ones, or the other patrons of the O.”

Sorgen also stated Sletto’s death was one of four gun-related homicides in Minot in 2023, saying, “There have been far too many shootings in bars in this city as of late.” She said she hoped a maximum sentence would serve as a deterrent in the future to prevent individuals from bringing their firearms to bars.

Cresap pushed back on Sorgen’s request for the sentence for the two counts to be served consecutively, saying it would likely result in it being overturned by the state Supreme Court on appeal. The judge also confronted McDermott’s attorney, Philip Becher, on his statements claiming his client had expressed remorse to Sletto’s family, saying he saw no evidence of it in the documents provided to the court.

McDermott used his time to apologize to the Sletto family, saying he would forever be haunted by the events of that night.

“I am sorry. I have wished every night since then that I could go back and change everything that I did. I wish I had never went out to that bar. I wish I wouldn’t have brought that firearm with me. I wish things hadn’t escalated with Mr. Sletto to what happened. I’m ashamed I let fear get the best of me, and pray every night for forgiveness. I will forever be sorry to anyone this has affected. I am deeply sorry,” McDermott said.

Before he delivered his sentence, Cresap bemoaned the frequency of bar-related shootings in Minot and throughout the state, saying, “As a community we’re dealing with the results of these incredibly stupid decisions. But sometimes I question what we need to do to prevent people from taking guns into a bar.”

Cresap said a number of factors weighed heavily against McDermott, noting the tragic event would not happen but not for his decision to bring his firearm with him to the bar and brandishing it rather than deescalating the dispute between himself and Sletto.

“I understand why the state requested the maximum sentence, because they are angry. I don’t have the luxury of being angry. I’m required to follow the law and take every single one of these sentencing factors and apply them how I see fit. I don’t get to be vengeful. I’m to be an objective part of this process,” Cresap said.