A man accused of shooting a Duluth police officer entered not guilty pleas Monday in St. Louis County District Court.
Manuel Eustaqio Munoz-Sierra, 54, is charged with attempted first-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder and second-degree assault in the Nov. 10 shooting of Officer Matt Hendrickson at the defendant's Central Hillside apartment building.
Munoz-Sierra had a court-appointed interpreter to help him understand Monday's proceedings. After a June hearing, Munoz-Sierra's attorney told the News Tribune that his client told him his shotgun accidentally discharged and he had no intention of harming anyone.
At Monday's hearing, defense attorney Mikkel Long told Judge Shaun Floerke that his client is challenging the probable cause to sustain the charges and asked the court to review the record. The next hearing in the case hasn't been scheduled.
According to the criminal complaint, Hendrickson was responding to a complaint of a man with a gun when he was hit by a single shotgun blast. He approached the front porch area of the residence at 34 E. Fifth St., opened the screen door and announced himself as a police officer before being shot. He didn't fire his weapon.
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Hendrickson, the son of a police officer, recovered from his injuries and now works for the Minneapolis Police Department.
