Zane Levi Perry hung his head after Southwest District Court Judge Rhonda Ehlis set his bond at $100,000 on Friday morning during his initial appearance two days after being charged with the attempted murder of the man who was living with him.
The 29-year-old Perry allegedly shot Michael Vigil, 25, in the chest with a shotgun on Wednesday night at a north Dickinson twinhome they occupied.
Vigil is recovering at a Bismarck hospital. Stark County State's Attorney Tom Henning said at the hearing that he had learned Vigil is awake and stable.
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Perry made his appearance at the Stark County Courthouse over ITV from the Southwest Multi-County Correction Center. The charge of attempted murder is a Class A felony that carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and/or a $20,000 fine. If Perry is found guilty and sentenced, he would not be eligible for parole for four years, Ehlis said.
Alcohol was involved in the shooting, Henning said.
If Perry were to post bond, he would be immediately required to sign up for the county's 24/7 alcohol testing program, would not be allowed to have firearms in his presence, would have no contact with Vigil or be allowed within 300 feet of him.
Both Henning and Ehlis said they were concerned about Perry's mental health, which played a large part in setting his bond amount.
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"The main issue here is the safety of the victim, the safety of the community and the safety of Mr. Perry," Ehlis said.
Henning's request to amend the original criminal complaint to state that Perry "intentionally engaged in conduct which, in fact, constituted a step towards the commission of the crime of murder, when the defendant intentionally or knowingly attempted to cause the death of another human ..." was honored by the court Friday afternoon.
Perry said during his appearance that he had not read all of his paperwork prior to appearing in court, and said he had been held in isolation at the Southwest Multi-County Correction Center, where he is a former employee.
