Posted on 11/29/2004 4:20:27 PM PST by Ladysmith
Homicide charges were filed Monday afternoon against the St. Paul, Minnesota, man accused of fatally shooting six hunters and wounding two others in Sawyer County. The criminal complaint filed with the court offers new details about the crimes.
Vang is charged with six counts of first-degree intentional homicide by use of a dangerous weapon and two counts of attempted first-degree intentional homicide in the November 21st shooting rampage.
The criminal complaint filed Monday afternoon in Sawyer County court says the two surviving hunters told investigators that no one in their hunting group pointed a gun at Chai Vang before he started shooting.
The document also alleges Vang changed his story when talking to authorities about what happened. According to the complaint, Vang told authorities "the only person he saw with a gun was the person who first approached him in the tree stand," Terry Willers, and that Willers took his gun and shot the others. Later, Vang said the hunters confronted him, used profane language and racial slurs, and fired the first shot.
Willers and Lauren Hesebeck say Vang fired the first shot after he was confronted on private property.
Willers told police when he was approached by Vang, Willers "unslung his rifle and held it in front his body but did not point it at the defendant [Vang], and yelled for the defendant to put the gun down and get out of here. Willers stated that the defendant then started shooting."
Four of the six hunters killed were shot in the back. Some victims were shot as many as four times.
Investigators found no evidence that any of the rest of Willers's party was armed, and authorities "observed that none of [the ATVs] contained any guns, gun cases, or gun racks."
Vang remains in the Sawyer County Jail on $2.5 million bail with an initial appearance scheduled for Tuesday.
The charges were filed on the day the last two funerals were held for the shooting victims. A service was held in Rice Lake for Willers's daughter, 27-year-old Jessica Willers of Bellevue. Another service was held in Dobie for Dennis Drew. Funerals for Mark Roidt, Robert and Joseph Crotteau, and Allan Laski were held over the weekend.
Homicide charges filed ping.
Plea bargin time!!!!!
Unless this case is tried in Dane County, Vang doesn't have a prayer.
You can add me, and MeekOneGOP would most likely want to know as well, and Credo Deus.
please add me to your ping list.
MeekOneGOP and Credo Deus, would you like to be added to the ping list?
You're on.
didn't Credo Dues get banned?
please add me to the ping list. Cheesehead in the SW needing updates. :)
...brother!...
Some of these people were shot 4 times? This was no misunderstanding.
You bet.
I saw his attorneys on TV.
They say this is not a "who dunnit", but a "why dunnit". If all but one of these people shot were unarmed, who cares why.
What a bastard, huh?
How is this possible?
The NYT said it was just a case of different cultures colliding and those nasty white males probably deserved it.
I went round and round with him on Saturday on this issue. I was wondering... :) he he he... thanks for adding me to the list. :)
Does bail get "re-set" or revoked now that charges are filed?
Today's court papers:
http://www.doj.state.wi.us/news/COMPLAINT.pdf
Please add me to your list.
Thanks
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