The case against a Palmyra man charged with murder in the July 17 bludgeoning death of a Detroit man remains on hold pending a hearing before a grand jury.

Charges against Jason C. Cote, 22, could be presented in September, Deputy Attorney General William Stokes said Thursday.

Cote is charged in a state police complaint with beating Ricky Cole, 47, with a pipe July 17 in a mobile home Cole rented on Main Street in Detroit. Detectives with the State Police Major Crimes Unit found Cole dead inside the blood-spattered mobile home.

Cole had a fractured skull, extensive blood loss and deep internal injuries, according to the autopsy. The state medical examiner’s office concluded that Cole died from blunt force trauma to the head and neck.

The state can’t proceed on any felony charge, including murder, until there is an indictment by a grand jury.

Cote remains held without bail at the Somerset County Jail in East Madison. A conviction on a murder charge carries a sentence of 25 years to life.

Advertisement

Web hed: Detroit man in jail on charges he fired shots, threatened

web summary: Paul Wright was arrested Tuesday night after, police said, he fired shots inside and outside a garage on Troy Road in Detroit and threatened another Troy Road man.

BY DOUG HARLOW

Staff Writer

A Detroit man remained in jail Thursday on felony weapons charges after police said he threatened to shoot and kill another man and fired several shots earlier in the week.

Paul D. Wright, 58, of Troy Road, is accused of firing two shots inside a garage on Troy Road and two more shots from a different gun outside the building around 8 p.m. Tuesday, according to a court affidavit. One shot hit a door frame.

Advertisement

No one was injured. Somerset County sheriff’s deputies also responded to the incident, as did members of the Detroit Fire Department.

The victim called 911 after Wright pointed a gun at him and said he would kill him, state police said in the affidavit. When police arrived, they saw Wright with the gun and cordoned off the area, closing Troy Road, Route 220, for two hours, according to Sgt. Peter Michaud of state police.

Wright climbed out onto the roof of the Troy Road home, still armed with a gun, Trooper Christopher Carr said in the court affidavit. The trooper contacted Wright by phone and convinced him to climb down.

Wright put the guns down — one of them a shotgun — and came out and was arrested, Carr said.

Wright is being held on $1,500 cash bail in Somerset County Jail in East Madison, charged with aggravated reckless conduct and criminal threatening with a firearm. Bail was set Wednesday at Wright’s first court appearance.

He did not enter a plea.

Advertisement

Wright has a short criminal record, including a conviction for operating under the influence in 1998, criminal mischief in 1996 and two counts of possession of illegal drugs in 2006.

His temporary court-appointed lawyer for Wednesday’s initial appearance was John Alsop of Skowhegan. A judge can assign a lawyer to represent him for his scheduled Oct. 16 if Wright submits the necessary paperwork.

Doug Harlow — 612-2367

dharlow@mainetoday.com


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.