BULLHEAD CITY — Attempted entry of a plea deal to resolve a springtime drive-by shooting incident in Bullhead City went awry when the 19-year-old defendant denied firing any bullets during an October 30 change of plea hearing in Kingman.
The Bullhead City police department said the gunfire took place between 2:00 a.m. and 4:00 a.m on May 14 at an apartment complex at 1775 Arriba Drive. It was the business, rather than victims, that reported the incident, and it was more than two weeks later when police arrested Brendon Laflair, 19, and issued a summons for Madilyn Hammarstedt, 20.
Police department public information officer Emily Fromelt said Hammarstedt had recently moved out of the complex and that Laflair ended up in a telephone argument with several apartment residents regarding the father of the woman‘s child. She said Laflair drove Hammarstedt to the complex and that Laflair opened fire upon a woman who was waiting for a ride outside who had been part of the previous phone conflict.
Deputy Mohave County attorney Melinda Bonson told judge Billy Sipe that one witness counted a barrage of 13 gunshots that injured no one. She said a victim sought safety by ducking under a vehicle.
Bonson said police believe that Laflair fired the shots and that after the fact text message review revealed he was indeed the shooter. Defense attorney Ross Carponelli also confirmed the incriminating text communication, but Laflair denied firing any weapon.
“That‘s not true, no,“ Laflair told Judge Sipe. “I wasn‘t the shooter.“
Sipe refused to enter or accept the plea deal, saying he wasn‘t going to send to prison a man who doesn‘t admit committing the crime of which he is being convicted.
The agreement required a 2-8.75-year prison term for an aggravated assault conviction. Judge Sipe told attorneys they can clean the case up or prepare for trial.
Sipe scheduled a November 7 status hearing for Laflair. The criminal case involving Hammarstedt is pending.
