Preliminary hearing held in District Court Monday
by E.E. Mullens
WALSENBURG — Following a two-hour long preliminary hearing Jan. 30, 2023, 35-year old Michael Montez was bound over for June jury trial date on charges of first and second degree murder in the Dec. 12, 2022 stabbing death of 56-year old Charles “Chuck” Herndon. Both the defendant and victim are from Walsenburg.
Nick Dale and Max Salazar are the prosecuting attorneys for the Third Judicial District Attorney’s Office. Patrick McCarville and Kate Mattern of the state public defender’s office represent the defendant. The hearing was conducted by District Court Judge J. Clay McKisson III.
Dale, who led the prosecution, called Huerfano Sheriff’s Deputy Roman Hijar, Colorado Bureau of Investigation Special Agent Danny Garcia and a 17-year old eyewitness to the stand during the hearing. Dale also introducted two short segments of Deputy Hijar’s body camera recordings as he and HCSO Captain Craig Lessar responded to the scene in the 200 block of W. Pinon St. in Walsenburg on the day of the fatal incident.
Dale first called the 17-year old male eyewitness to the stand who testified he had gone to the small travel trailer Herndon lived in, to return tools he had borrowed from the victim. He said while he was there, Herndon and Montez were inside the trailer talking and looking at rocks, saying the rocks were either crystals or geodes and had been getting along fine for approximately 10 minutes before Montez suddenly attacked Herndon, stabbing him multiple times. The witness said Montez called Herndon a chomo, slang for child molester, as he reached into his pants pocket and produced a folding pocket knife, the suspected murder weapon.
The witness testified both men were standing at the time of the attack and in the process of the attack, Herndon fell on top of Montez. The witness said he helped Herndon up, and with the victim’s arm around his shoulder, tried to walk him away from the scene. Herndon collapsed in a yard two doors from where he lived in the travel trailer. The brief body camera video Dale introduced as evidence depicted Deputy Hijar’s initial approach to the trailer and showed at least one item of bloody clothing on the ground and a glimpse of the interior of the trailer. The other video showed the deputy’s point of view as he followed Capt. Lessar to where Herndon lay on the ground as he was undergoing initial life saving measures by EMTs. EMTs would continue to work to save the victim’s life as Deputy Hijar drove the ambulance to Spanish Peaks Regional Heath Center’s emergency room.
Those efforts were for naught, as Herndon died at the health center’s emergency department. Deputy Hijar said, while the full medical examiner’s report has not been forwarded to the involved agencies, a brief report about the report had been received that indicates Herndon had been slashed on the neck and stabbed four times on the left side of his back, and suffered single stab wounds on the right side of his back near the spine and on the left side of his head near his ear.
McCarville, on cross-examination, asked the witness questions on how he had met Herndon; he answered through a mutual friend, and then the defense attorney asked about the nature of the younger man and older man’s relationship. The witness said he just did things for “Chuck” like bringing him food, clothing and firewood and borrowing tools from the victim for use in various projects.
Hijar testified it was the witness who identified Montez as the assailant, although he knew him by another last name, Triber. The witness also identified Montez in court.
Following the witness and deputy’s testimony, Dale called CBI Agent Garcia to the stand, who testified the state agency was called in to assist the sheriff’s department, with his role being primarily involved in helping prepare search warrants and aiding in interviews. Agent Garcia testified on direct examination that additional CBI crime scene evidence technicians and personnel were also called to the scene to assist local law enforcement.
While the defense did not call any witnesses to the stand, McCarville did cross examine each of those called by the prosecution, and raised a number of objections, which for the most part were overruled by the court. It was noted the defendant turned himself in to the sheriff’s office at approximately 3 p.m. the day of the homicide.
“Credibility and the character (of the eyewitness) will be paramount in this case,” McCarville said, “the victim was stabbed seven times – but who did that?” McCarville said the eyewitness’s credibility will be attacked at trial.
Judge McKisson found the elements for both first and second degree murder were present in the prosecution’s case and bound the defendant over for trial. After some minutes comparing schedules, a June 12-20, 2023 trial date was set by the judge with a motions hearing set for 9 a.m. May 5. A pre-trial readiness conference will also held at the time of the motions hearing.
The defendant was remanded to the custody of the sheriff’s office.