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Prosecutors want more time to prepare case against Schroeder
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Libby Murder Trial Pushed Back to January
BY JUSTIN FRANZ OF THE BEACON
The 74-year-old Libby man accused of shooting and killing another man in his living room and then not reporting the incident for 18 hours was due to stand trial starting Sept. 28, but prosecutors now say they need more time to prepare their case.
The Lincoln County Attorney filed a motion to continue the trial of Henry Carl Schroeder in early September and now it has been rescheduled for January. Schro- eder has been charged with deliberate homicide and tampering with evidence in the Jan. 31 shooting death of Thomas Lawrence Veloz.
According to court documents, Kimber- lee Ann Patterson and Veloz were dating
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Kalispell Man Arrested for Ramming Another Vehicle
A Kalispell man has been arrested and charged with assault with a weapon after he allegedly rammed his car into another vehicle as his wife took their young daughter out of the back seat.
Michael Paul Noland is currently being held in the Flathead County Deten- tion Center on a $40,000 bond.
According to court documents, on Sept. 25, Noland was sitting in his pickup truck revving the engine while his wife was taking their 2-year-old daughter out of the backseat. Noland then allegedly “peeled out” and drove directly into the back of his wife’s vehicle, sending both the woman and child to the ground. Noland then left the scene while the woman called 911. One neighbor reported seeing both the woman and child on the ground bleeding after the crash. The 2-year-old also had a large lump on her forehead.
Noland will be arraigned in Flathead County District Court on Oct. 8 before Judge Heidi Ulbricht. If convicted, Noland could face up to 20 years in prison and a fine of $50,000.
but the couple had a falling out in late Jan- uary. On the evening of Jan. 31, Patterson was at Schroeder’s house and said her rela- tionship with Veloz was over. She asked if it was OK if she stayed there because her ex-boyfriend was on a “warpath.”
At about 8 p.m., Veloz allegedly barged into Schroeder’s house and told him, “I’m going to kill you for messing around with my girlfriend.” Veloz then grabbed Patter- son by the arm and told her to get in the car. Patterson pulled away and Schroeder ran into his bedroom to get a .380-caliber pistol. Schroeder then shot Veloz from about six feet away, according to court records. After Veloz went down, Schro- eder walked over to him and shot him a few more times, emptying the clip after
Nicole Waller. COURTESY PHOTO
Boyfriend Pleads Not Guilty to Murdering Missing Kalispell Woman
An eastern Montana man has denied allegations that he killed his former girl- friend in February 2013 and hid her body.
Officials in Richland County say 36-year-old Cody Wayne Johnston of Fairview pleaded not guilty Tuesday to deliberate homicide and tampering with evidence in the suspected death of 31-year-old Nicole Waller of Kalispell. Her body has not been found.
District Judge Greg Pinski of Great Falls is overseeing the case and appeared via video for Johnston’s arraignment.
Johnston remains jailed in Sidney with his bail set at $250,000. Court records said investigators learned that Johnston and Waller had argued, he lied about where he was the morning she went missing and he had someone help him move her vehicle. Prosecutors say he texted another girlfriend and told her that Waller left and was gone for good.
firing a total of five bullets.
After the shooting, Schroeder and Pat-
terson picked up some of the shells and covered Veloz’s body, but neither of them reported the shooting to authorities. Both of them were arrested the following day after another person saw the body and called the police. Patterson has been charged with tampering with witnesses and tampering with evidence.
Schroeder was initially charged with negligent homicide but that was later amended to deliberate homicide. He pleaded not guilty to deliberate homicide and tampering with evidence on March 2. If convicted of deliberate homicide, Schro- eder could face up to 100 years in prison.
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Police Looking for Suspects in Hutton Ranch ‘Road Rage’ Incident
Police are looking for two people who were allegedly involved with a shooting following a “road rage” incident on Hut- ton Ranch on Sept. 30.
Michael John Ince and Erin Elizabeth Carnahan have been identified by the Kalispell Police Department as “people of interest” following the incident.
According to a press release, Kalis- pell Police were dispatched to a road rage incident in progress on U.S. Highway 93 shortly before 5 p.m. While on the phone with dispatch, and before police arrived, the reporting party stated that someone in a blue Dodge Caravan pointed a gun at him. The person then allegedly fired at the reporting party and a bullet shattered his car window. The blue van left the scene shortly before police arrived.
Officers made contact with the vic- tim who reported that there were two or three people inside the van at the time of the shooting.
With assistance from the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office and Montana Highway Patrol, police tracked down the van in the Evergreen area on Wednesday evening, however, they are still looking for Ince and Carnahan.
“It’s still under investigation but at least no one was injured,” said detective Andy Haag.
If anyone has any information regard- ing the location of either Ince or Carna- han they are encouraged to call the Kalis- pell Police Department at (406) 758-7780 or at (406) 752-8477.
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OCTOBER 7, 2015 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM
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