September 1, 2021 at 7:06 p.m.
Boyd trial moved again
Portland man charged with 2020 murder of James Miller
Boyd trial moved again
The trial for a Portland man charged with murder has been moved again.
During what had originally been scheduled as a final pretrial conference held Friday, Roger L. Boyd’s trial for the Sept. 5, 2020, murder of James P. Miller was rescheduled for February.
The trial, which has been rescheduled several times, had been slated to begin Oct. 11. It is now scheduled to start Feb. 7.
In addition to the murder charge, Boyd, 35, faces a charge of criminal confinement while armed with a deadly weapon, a Level 3 felony.
Police arrested Boyd shortly after Miller, 49, Montpelier was shot in the early morning hours of Sept. 15, 2020, outside the house at 1215 S. Bridge St. Portland. Miller was pronounced dead at the scene.
According to court documents, police say Boyd admitted at the scene to shooting Miller. Police say Boyd told them he acted in self defense and that he believed Miller had a weapon. No such weapon was found, court documents show.
Nicole L. Burke, Miller’s girlfriend, was later found in the basement of the house. Court documents indicate that she told police she was standing in the driveway after the shooting and Boyd ordered her into the house and told her to go to the basement.
Boyd’s girlfriend Brittney Shewmake, who owned the 1215 S. Bridge St. property at the time of the incident, is charged with criminal confinement, a Level 3 felony, in connection with the incident. (Her trial is scheduled to begin Nov. 1.) Court documents indicate she was inside the house with two children, ages 3 and 5, at the time of the shooting.
Boyd is a former officer with Dunkirk Police Department and Jay County Sheriff’s Office. He was fired from his job at the sheriff’s office.
His trial was one of five scheduled for this year in Jay County. Already in 2020, Esther J. Stephen, Portland, and Shelby Hiestand, rural Portland, have been convicted of the Jan. 12, 2020, murder of Shea Briar. Stephen was sentenced to 55 years in prison while Hiestand’s sentencing is slated for Sept. 24. A third woman, Hannah Knapke, 20, Fort Recovery, is scheduled to be tried for Briar’s murder in November
Cory M. Jones, 44, Redkey, is scheduled to stand trial beginning Oct. 25 for the Aug. 22 murder of Shanna Jones of Dunkirk.
In Indiana, murder carries a sentence of 45 to 65 years with an advisory sentence of 55 years.
During what had originally been scheduled as a final pretrial conference held Friday, Roger L. Boyd’s trial for the Sept. 5, 2020, murder of James P. Miller was rescheduled for February.
The trial, which has been rescheduled several times, had been slated to begin Oct. 11. It is now scheduled to start Feb. 7.
In addition to the murder charge, Boyd, 35, faces a charge of criminal confinement while armed with a deadly weapon, a Level 3 felony.
Police arrested Boyd shortly after Miller, 49, Montpelier was shot in the early morning hours of Sept. 15, 2020, outside the house at 1215 S. Bridge St. Portland. Miller was pronounced dead at the scene.
According to court documents, police say Boyd admitted at the scene to shooting Miller. Police say Boyd told them he acted in self defense and that he believed Miller had a weapon. No such weapon was found, court documents show.
Nicole L. Burke, Miller’s girlfriend, was later found in the basement of the house. Court documents indicate that she told police she was standing in the driveway after the shooting and Boyd ordered her into the house and told her to go to the basement.
Boyd’s girlfriend Brittney Shewmake, who owned the 1215 S. Bridge St. property at the time of the incident, is charged with criminal confinement, a Level 3 felony, in connection with the incident. (Her trial is scheduled to begin Nov. 1.) Court documents indicate she was inside the house with two children, ages 3 and 5, at the time of the shooting.
Boyd is a former officer with Dunkirk Police Department and Jay County Sheriff’s Office. He was fired from his job at the sheriff’s office.
His trial was one of five scheduled for this year in Jay County. Already in 2020, Esther J. Stephen, Portland, and Shelby Hiestand, rural Portland, have been convicted of the Jan. 12, 2020, murder of Shea Briar. Stephen was sentenced to 55 years in prison while Hiestand’s sentencing is slated for Sept. 24. A third woman, Hannah Knapke, 20, Fort Recovery, is scheduled to be tried for Briar’s murder in November
Cory M. Jones, 44, Redkey, is scheduled to stand trial beginning Oct. 25 for the Aug. 22 murder of Shanna Jones of Dunkirk.
In Indiana, murder carries a sentence of 45 to 65 years with an advisory sentence of 55 years.
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