WILLMAR -- Brandon Michael Bartsh, 20, of Willmar, was sentenced to two years of probation, $600 in fines and stayed jail time for two lesser charges stemming from an early morning shooting spree last fall in Dovre Township.
Bartsh's sentence, for gross misdemeanor property damage and misdemeanor underage consumption, was handed down Thursday in Kandiyohi County District Court. He received 365 days in jail, with 363 days stayed and credit for two days served. He was also ordered to attend a MADD impact panel, a property-crime impact panel and attend victim-offender mediation if recommended by probation or write a letter of apology.
As part of a plea agreement reached Jan. 3, four felony charges for drive-by shooting, plus another gross misdemeanor and a misdemeanor, were dismissed.
Two other men involved in the October incident pleaded guilty Feb. 7 to similar charges, with the four felonies for drive-by shooting against each dismissed in plea agreements.
Daniel Andrew Bender, 19, of Cokato, will be sentenced March 6 on a gross misdemeanor for damage to property and a misdemeanor for underage consumption. Adam Kenneth Tabberson, 18, of Willmar, also pleaded guilty to a gross misdemeanor for property damage and a misdemeanor for open bottle. He was sentenced to a year of probation and a $1,000 fine, $500 of which was stayed. A total of 317 days of jail time were stayed and he was given credit for 48 days already served. Tabberson must also complete a chemical dependency evaluation, forfeit his weapons and write a letter of apology.
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The charges were filed after Kandiyohi County sheriff's deputies responded to a 911 call around 2:20 a.m. Oct. 15 from a resident who said nine shots had been fired from a vehicle in front of his home along the 6000 block of County Road 5. The man told authorities that the vehicle had been slowly driving back and forth and that it was sitting at the end of his driveway with its headlights off at the time of the call.
A deputy located and stopped the vehicle near the intersection of 15th Street Northwest and County Road 27. The deputy saw four individuals moving frantically in the vehicle after he activated his squad car lights. The deputy waited for backup -- another deputy and a Willmar officer -- before removing the men from the vehicle. Officers saw a cooler in the back seat, numerous open beer cans, fireworks and a .22-caliber rifle on the floor of the vehicle.
According to the complaint, Tabberson told the officers that they started by going out on "the haunted road" around 1:30 a.m. and then they decided to shoot out some lights with the rifle, which belonged to Bartsh. They first shot a tree along County Road 5 and then a yard light, with Bender taking approximately five shots to hit the light. They continued on and shot at the light at another residence before the deputy stopped their car.
The fourth individual in the car told police he was a passenger in the back seat and that he had not been drinking. A breath test was administered and confirmed his statement. The man told authorities that Bartsh and Bender had done the shooting and that Tabberson had been driving. He said there were at least two yard lights and a stop sign damaged by the shots fired. The individual was not charged in the incident.
Breath tests for alcohol were administered to Bartsh and Bender, with Bartsh showing a blood alcohol level of 0.129 and Bender a level of 0.146.
