Zach Benoit
Billings Gazette
2/10/2010
Charges will not be filed against a man accused of shooting a co-worker in the forehead at the West End Walmart last summer, Yellowstone County Attorney Dennis Paxinos announced Wednesday.
In a written statement, Paxinos said the actions of Craig Schmidt, 49, who was accused of shooting 32-year-old Danny Lira during an altercation at Walmart last August, “are supported by Montana law, in both presenting a firearm and in its discharge” and that he was defending himself.
Schmidt was arrested at the scene of the shooting last Aug. 10 and was released from the county jail a short time later while the County Attorney’s Office investigated. He was released under Montana’s then-recently enacted House Bill 228, known as the “castle doctrine” law, which says a person has a natural right to use firearms in self-defense and doesn’t have to call law enforcement before using “justifiable” force.
Schmidt was facing possible charges of assault with a weapon, but the law brought about the need for investigators to gather more information about the incident to determine whether Schmidt believed his life was threatened.
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