A Wisconsin man is headed for life behind bars after a jury convicted him in the execution-style killings of a young married couple inside a small-town bar earlier this year.
Jurors in Walworth County needed less than three hours on Friday to find 58-year-old Thomas Routt guilty on multiple felony charges, including two counts of first-degree intentional homicide, for the brutal shooting deaths of Gina and Emerson Weingart.
The couple, married less than a year, were gunned down inside the Sports Page Barr in Elkhorn on February 1. Gina, 37, was working her shift as a bartender when Routt pulled a gun and opened fire. Emerson, 33, was keeping her company during the late-night hours.
Court records show Routt was also convicted of attempted homicide for firing at a witness fleeing the scene, along with armed robbery, possession of a firearm by a felon, and possession of methamphetamine. He now awaits sentencing and faces the likelihood of spending the rest of his life in prison.
Prosecutors said Routt confessed in chilling detail — admitting not only to the murders but also to taking cash from the bar’s register and shooting Emerson a second time when he realized the man was still alive.
“There are details that he talks about that law enforcement didn’t give him,” Walworth County District Attorney Zeke Wiedenfeld told the jury. “About the order of shots, about Emerson being on the phone at the time. All of those little details — those aren’t things that law enforcement gave him.”
Routt’s defense claimed the confession was coerced after a psychologically damaging interrogation, but jurors didn’t buy it.
According to investigators, Routt entered the bar late at night and began playing gaming machines. Only four people were inside: the couple, a witness, and Routt. That witness told police that Routt suddenly drew a gun, pointed it at Gina, and demanded no one move. When Gina resisted, he fired. The witness fled — and Routt chased, firing multiple shots.
Emerson, who was still alive after the initial shooting, was finished off moments later. Routt then emptied the register, taking about $120 before disappearing.
A few days later, on February 5, police caught up with Routt during a traffic stop. He was arrested after methamphetamine was found on him. While in custody, he asked to speak with investigators about the Elkhorn murders and allegedly gave a full confession.
He even led authorities to a trash can at a nearby Handi-Mart, where police later recovered the 9mm handgun used in the slayings.
The Weingarts had only been married since June 2023. According to their obituary, they were deeply in love, having met in 2020 and quickly becoming inseparable. Their sudden and violent end has left the tight-knit community of Elkhorn in shock.
Sentencing is scheduled for September 26.
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Author: thedailycrime1
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