A 64-year-old Bigfork man faces four charges, including first-degree attempted murder, stemming from an incident on Saturday near Effie, Minn., that reportedly stemmed from a hunting complaint.
Itasca County Attorney John Muhar said Dennis Morris Taylor is charged with discharging a gun close enough to another man to cause burns in the other man's neck. He's also charged with pointing the gun at the man's father. He faces charges of first-degree and second-degree attempted murder and two charges of second-degree assault.
Muhar did not release the names of the other men involved in the incident, referring to them only by initials.
According to the statement of probable cause, Taylor was involved in a dispute on Saturday afternoon with the father and son, who complained that he was hunting too close to their house. According to the other men, Taylor returned two hours after the initial dispute in a red pickup truck and "started to spin donuts" on the county road next to their driveway. When they tried to get Taylor to stop, Taylor allegedly got out of the truck, pulled a pistol from a holster and pointed it at the son's face, and then the gun discharged. They said he then pointed the pistol at the father and said, "You're next."
The father told his son to call 911, and police were called at 4:40 p.m.
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An Itasca County sheriff's deputy said powder burns and a mark on the son's neck appear to be made from the slide of the pistol.
Taylor told police that the other men kicked his truck and things escalated from there. An investigator found marks in the dust near the driver's area but no footprints on the truck. Police arrested Taylor and took him to jail.
Bail was set at $500,000 without conditions or $250,000 with the conditions that Taylor have no firearms, keep court appearances, keep in contact with his attorney, obey laws and have no contact with the alleged victims or their residence.
Taylor is being held in the Itasca County Jail. His next court appearance is set for 8:30 a.m. Nov. 1.
