By Ron VandenBoom
The Lionel Demontiney transfer hearing scheduled for Dec. 15, was canceled Friday when Demontiney notified the court that he was not going to contest being tried as an adult.
A plea hearing has been scheduled for Friday, Nov. 22, at 3 p.m. in the Hill County Courthouse at which time Demontiney will enter a plea of guilty or innocent.
Demontiney, a 17-year-old Rocky Boy man, is accused of shooting to death his cousin, 24-year-old Bryan Gopher, on the evening of Nov. 22 after an argument in the parking lot of the Havre Holiday Village Shopping Center.
Court documents filed by Hill County Attorney, David Rice, allege Demontiney, Gopher, and another cousin, Joe Demontiney III arrived at the shopping center in a pickup truck just before midnight on the 22 where Gopher and Lionel Demontiney exited the vehicle.
They then started pushing and shoving one another when, according to the documents, Gopher pulled a 9 mm pistol on Demontiney and a shot was fired.
The court documents go on to say that Gopher returned the weapon to the cab of the truck where Demontiney retrieved it. The argument continued to the rear of the vehicle when the fatal shot was fired, the documents allege.
Two women found Gopher's body shortly after midnight and the Hill County Sheriff's Department was notified a short time later.
Documents say that a tip from Joe Demontiney III was received by the Rocky Boy Police Department at 351 a.m. on Nov. 23 that led to Lionel Demontiney's apprehension a short time later. Rocky Boy Police also retrieved the alleged murder weapon shortly after the arrest.
Demontiney was released on $10,000 bail on Thursday, Dec. 14, according to Rice, and is now staying with his uncle, Pete Demontiney, in Box Elder. He is being electronically monitored during his release.
