A 32-year-old hitchhiker who gouged out his own eyes while awaiting trial has been sentenced to consecutive life prison terms without the possibility of parole for the murder of a driver who stopped to help him.
The conviction follows an October 14, 2024, incident along Interstate 16. According to police reports, 43-year-old Bruce Dupree pulled his vehicle over to pick up Robert Keller, who was hitchhiking on the side of the highway.
Investigators determined that Keller, who was under the influence of drugs at the time, attacked and killed Dupree. Keller then dragged Dupree’s body onto a highway median before fleeing the scene in the victim’s car. Authorities later located Keller and the stolen vehicle at a local hotel, where he was taken into custody.
On July 8, a jury found Keller guilty of all 10 counts brought against him. The charges included malice murder, four counts of felony murder, aggravated assault, aggravated battery, armed robbery, first-degree hijacking of a motor vehicle, and possession of a weapon during the commission of a felony.
While held in jail after his arrest, Keller engaged in severe self-harm, biting off part of his tongue and gouging out both of his eyes. The behavior prompted psychological evaluations by two separate experts to determine his mental competency to stand trial.
Both clinicians ruled that Keller was legally competent.
One evaluator, Dr. Jeremy Gay, testified that Keller “was not suffering from either a delusional compulsion at the time of the crime or an inability to distinguish right and wrong at the time of the crime.” Jail records also indicated that Keller told staff members he intentionally harmed himself because he wanted to “cover his ass” and secure a transfer to a medical prison facility.
Keller addressed the court during his proceedings, stating, “I’m a divine being. … I am here by special presentation and appearance of the entity known as Robert Brandon Lewis Keller. I would like the ability to be trusted, to tell the truth, but this is not the setting I trust to do so.”
Prior to issuing the consecutive life sentences, Judge Matthew Hube contrasted the actions of the two men on the day of the highway killing.
“On October 14, 2024, Mr. Dupree represented the best of us; he stopped and helped someone that he thought was in need,” Hube said. “On October 14, 2024, Mr. Keller represented the worst of us. He took advantage of someone trying to help and left a trail of wreckage in his wake.”
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