Defendant in Bigfork Double Homicide Admits Shooting One Victim, Claiming Self Defense
Derrick James Jackson on Friday told jurors in his deliberate homicide trial that he feared for his life when he shot 65-year-old Stanley Grotberg in the face, but denies shooting his 62-year-old mother
By Maggie Dresser
After prosecutors rested their case on Friday afternoon in the murder trial of 39-year-old Derrick James Jackson, the defendant took the stand and told a Flathead County jury that he feared for his life during an altercation with 65-year-old Stanley Grotberg on Oct. 29, 2022. Jackson then shot his mother’s boyfriend twice in the face after Grotberg fatally shot 62-year-old Tricia DeMotts, according to his testimony.
Jackson has pleaded not guilty to two felony charges of deliberate homicide in the deaths of 65-year-old Stanley Grotberg and 62-year-old Tricia DeMotts. He has also been charged with a third felony charge of tampering with or fabricating evidence and a fourth felony charge of criminal possession of dangerous drugs. Flathead County District Court Judge Amy Eddy is presiding over the trial, which began March 31 and has largely featured evidence and testimony portraying Jackson as the only suspect in the case.
Defense attorneys Levi Roadman and Thomas Schoenleben, however, have argued that the Flathead County Sheriff Office’s investigation should have included Grotberg as a possible suspect in the death of DeMotts.
On the fifth day of trial, the defense called on Jackson to describe his version of what unfolded inside the residence on Esteban Lane in Bigfork, a home he shared with the victims and the location where the alleged murders took place. Jackson said he got into an altercation with Grotberg because Grotberg was being verbally abusive toward DeMotts. Grotberg then went out to his vehicle to grab a pistol, according to his testimony.
Shortly after, all parties returned to the kitchen and Jackson said Grotberg appeared to be drawing the gun when Jackson grabbed the weapon from him and began hitting him with it in the head, causing a large amount of blood.
At this point, Jackson said he removed the firearm magazine and threw the gun on the ground when Grotberg picked it back up and went into the bedroom with DeMotts.
While the couple was in the bedroom, Jackson said he heard a “really weird sound” that he suspected could have been someone gasping for air.
In between sobs, Jackson said he opened the door and found his mother’s body draped over the edge of the bed. He said Grotberg then pulled her off the bed and shot her before Jackson began fighting with him again.
“I got the gun from him again, I had the gun pointed at him, and I said … what the [expletive] dude,” Jackson said. “And I asked him what he’s doing, and he screamed at me and said, ‘[expletive] you’ and he comes running at me and I shot him.”
During Deputy Flathead County Attorney Katie Handley’s cross examination, Jackson told jurors that after the shooting, he removed Grotberg’s leather jacket and fedora from his dead body and put it on his own, walked over to the neighbor’s house and picked up a drill.
After the neighbor called law enforcement to report him trespassing, Andy Westphal, who was then a deputy with the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office, arrested him. Westphal testified that Jackson was being uncooperative at first, ditched his weapon, continued to exhibit strange behavior and did not mention the shooting. He also said he suspected he was under the influence of drugs.
Jackson told jurors he dropped the gun because he was fearful that Westphal was going to shoot him. He defended his behavior, which body cam footage depicted as incoherent with inconsistent answers, as a reaction to trauma.
Before the state rested their case, Flathead County Sheriff’s Office Detective Ryan Stoll, who was designated the lead detective in the case, testified that when he visited the crime scene, he noted signs of an altercation and identified Jackson as the only person of interest.
Stoll also read a portion of a letter the defendant wrote to his ex-girlfriend while he was in jail, highlighting the uncertainty surrounding Grotberg’s retrieval of the gun from the vehicle.
“In the letter there was a statement made, ‘I’ll tell you what – it sure would help if someone said they saw Stan go out to his car and get the gun,’” Stoll said.
Closing arguments will begin on Monday, April 7 at 9:30 a.m.