Former cop now faces 4 counts of attempted murder
JUNEAU EMPIRE
The former Juneau police lieutenant who
opened fire on police officers Saturday evening was charged with three
additional counts of first-degree attempted murder Tuesday, according to new
charging documents.
Troy A. Wilson, 45, now faces a total of 15
felony charges. Four of those are for attempting to murder four different
Juneau police officers — his former coworkers — by firing a rifle at them.
District Attorney David Brower also charged
Wilson with three additional counts of third-degree assault and another count
of second-degree weapons misconduct.
Wilson was arrested early Sunday morning
following a five-hour shooting spree Saturday evening. Prosecutors say the
former SWAT instructor barricaded himself in his house and fired about 75 to
100 shots. He used night vision devices to help him aim at police officers,
charging documents state.
Police said no one was injured during the
incident.
With eyes cast down and head bowed, Wilson
made for his first public court appearance Tuesday. He wore a orange prisoner’s
jumpsuit.
Not once did he appear to look upward to meet
to eyes of the judge, the two uniformed Juneau police officers in the back of
the courtroom or the four women — who refused to be identified — sitting in the
first two front rows.
The only time Wilson raised his gaze was to
ask a question to his newly hired defense attorney, Julie Willoughby, who sat
to his left at the defendant’s table.
The 17-year JPD veteran was arraigned Sunday
by a magistrate judge. That judge set bail at $500,000 cash per the state’s
request.
On Tuesday, District Attorney David Brower
asked the judge to raise bail to $1 million cash.
“Judge, the initial information was filed
Sunday morning after initially contacting Juneau police,” Brower said. “Upon
further review of the evidence and further investigation and interviews, the
state has added the additional charges and the additional information. And
we’re asking that the bail be increased to a million dollars — $500,000
appearance and $500,000 performance, along with third-party custodian. The
allegations are extremely serious and the statements are made extremely
serious.”
Charging documents show that Wilson vowed to
“kill the world” during the rampage. He also threatened “to hunt down and kill”
Juneau Police Department Chief Greg Browning, Assistant Chief Paige Decker,
Capt. Ed Mercer and Investigator Kim Horn who tried to negotiate with him by phone
throughout the standoff, according to an updated affidavit filed by Brower.
Haines Magistrate Judge John Hutchins, who
was filling in for Juneau District Court Judge Thomas Nave, granted Brower’s
bail request after Willoughby reserved their bail order.
“I think the state’s request is appropriate,”
based on the nature of the offense and the danger presented to the community
and victims, Hutchins said.
Brower also requested a blanket condition of
release that requires Wilson be prohibited from contacting any Juneau Police
Department officers, in addition to those listed in the criminal complaint,
should Wilson post bail.
Willoughby objected, saying Wilson should
only be prohibited from initiating contact with any JPD officers. She didn’t
object to her client being prohibited from contacting any of the officers
specifically listed in the complaint.
The judge agreed with Willoughby and allowed
that condition of release to be amended.
The nine-minute hearing ended with Wilson
shuffling out of the courtroom with Willoughby by his side. He was escorted by
an armed court security officer.
Wilson is next scheduled to appear in court
later this month on April 20 for a preliminary hearing.
Officers had responded to Wilson’s house of
Black Wolf Way around 10:15 p.m. Saturday night when they received a 911 phone
call from his wife. Wilson’s wife, only identified as “J.W.” in court papers,
told police her husband was suicidal and had a gun.
The shooting began sometime after that,
though it’s not immediately clear when. Some neighbors previously told the
Empire they did not hear shots until later in the evening.
Brower alleges Wilson, who was wearing an
armored vest, attempted to murder officers Lee Phelps, Darin Schultz, Brandon
Lawrenson and Krag Campbell.
Phelps was stationed behind some trees behind
Wilson’s house, and heard bullets hitting all around him, Brower wrote.
A bullet hole was later found in a tree
behind where Phelps was stationed, the affidavit states.
Schultz was positioned across the street from
Wilson’s house between a truck and a shed that were about 10 to 15 feet apart.
Wilson began firing multiple rounds at Schultz’s direction “at a close enough
distance that Officer Shultz could hear the rounds whizzing by his head,”
Brower wrote. Three rounds were ultimately recovered by the shed, Brower said.
Schultz was also one of the first officers who arrived on scene. He quickly exited his patrol vehicle that was later found with about eight bullet holes in it, according to the document.
Schultz was also one of the first officers who arrived on scene. He quickly exited his patrol vehicle that was later found with about eight bullet holes in it, according to the document.
Lawrenson was stationed with Krag Campbell
between a house and a 24-foot boat across the street. Wilson began shooting at
their location, and Campbell reported hearing bullets “zipping by” his head,
the affidavit states.
“Based on the direction from which the rounds
were fired, Investigator (Paul) Hatch assessed that Wilson had to move from the
downstairs area of his residence to the upstairs in order to fire in the
direction of Investigators Lawrenson and Campbell,” the affidavit states.
“Wilson also stated to the crisis negotiation team that he could see officers
across the street from his house and that he intended to shoot them.”
The three new assault charges are for
allegedly placing Officers Brian Dallas, Dominic Branson and Lt. David Campbell
in fear of imminent serious injury. The three officers were stationed
approximately five houses down from Wilson’s house and around the corner.
Wilson fired shots in their direction, and
the rounds were skipping off the roadway about 20 to 50 feet away from them,
Brower wrote.
“Each of the officers was in fear that they
would be injured by the ricochetting rounds,” and moved their position further
away, Brower said.
Wilson resigned from JPD in December as he
was being investigated for off-duty behavior that allegedly violated police
policy and procedure, JPD spokeswoman Cindee Brown-Mills told the Empire on
Monday.
The subject of that investigation has not
been released, though Brown-Mills said it was associated with a psychological
condition.
