LANDER — Three Fremont County men from the same family pleaded “not guilty” to various murder and manslaughter charges Tuesday in a shared arraignment hearing in the Fremont County District Court.
Accused of killing or helping to kill 38-year-old Evan Denevan in a Lander bar brawl Jan. 9, Richard “Deak” Dollard, Jesse Dollard and Justin Dollard sat together Tuesday on the defense side of the courtroom wearing black dress shirts and jeans.
After each gave a “not guilty” plea at the defense table before District Court Judge Kate McKay, each man returned to sit with his co-defendant family members in the front row.
Jesse Dollard, 21, rubbed his father Justin’s back as the two men traded places between pleas.
About 20 people attended the hearing, not including attorneys, court security and press. Those people dispersed roughly evenly between the defense and prosecution sides of the gallery.
The Charges
Deak Dollard, 53, faces one count of second-degree murder or an alternative charge of voluntary manslaughter. He’s accused of choking Denevan, court documents say.
The murder charge is punishable by between 20 years and life in prison, and the manslaughter charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
Deak at the time of his arrest was a U.S. Bureau of Land Management officer, Lander Police Chief Kelly Waugh confirmed last month to Cowboy State Daily.
The BLM did not return a request for comment last month on Deak’s employment status during the case.
Deak’s brother Justin Dollard, 54, faces alternative counts alleging he was an accessory before the fact to either murder (20 years-to-life in prison) or manslaughter (maximum of 20 years).
Jesse originally faced the same charges as his father, but the murder accessory charge was dropped at a preliminary hearing in Lander Circuit Court last month, and he now is accused only of being an accessory before the fact to manslaughter.
That carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
Deak’s defense attorney Ryan Semerad, of Casper-based firm Fuller and Semerad, declined Tuesday after court to comment, as did Justin’s public defense attorney Valerie Schoneberger.
Jesse Dollard’s public defense attorney Zachary Mahlum, who did not remain in court after Jesse’s portion of the arraignment, declined to comment on a post-publication text message.
All three men are set for “stacked,” or tentative, trials starting May 4.
Schoneberger and Semerad both indicated to the judge they’ll motion for firmer trial settings and individualized trials.
Deak’s bond is set at $500,000, Justin’s at $200,000 and Jesse’s at $100,000.
Court Documents Say …
An evidentiary affidavit by a Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation agent, filed Jan. 13 in Lander Circuit Court, describes a brawl which at one point contained eight to 10 people, unfolding at the Maverick Bar around 11 p.m. on Jan. 9.
A 911 caller beckoned Lander Police Department officers to the scene at around 11:15 p.m. The caller indicated “we have someone down at the Maverick Bar, he’s not breathing, he’s all purple,” says the affidavit.
LPD officers arrived and found Denevan lying on his back near the pool tables with bystanders trying to help him, the document says.
Officers began life-saving measures, but later noted that the man’s face was “slightly purple in color” and they weren’t able to find a carotid pulse. Fremont County emergency medical personnel arrived as well, to help, but “Denevan was determined to be deceased,” says the affidavit.
LPD secured the bar as a crime scene.
Initial witness statements reportedly describe a fight between Denevan and the three Dollard men.
“Deak choked him,” said several witnesses on scene, according to the document.
LPD detectives asked Deak for an interview. He met with detectives, then invoked his right to have an attorney present.
Justin Dollard’s Interview
Justin Dollard in his interview with LPD detectives confirmed he was involved in the fight.
Denevan had previously said he would “whip” Justin, the latter reportedly said, and has threatened to fight both Justin and Jesse Dollard.
Denevan had yelled at the Dollard father and son, “If you come over here I will kick your ass,” the affidavit relates.
Then, according to Justin Dollard’s interview and Jesse Dollard’s separate interview, Denevan removed his hat and glasses as if preparing for a fight.
Justin Dollard told detectives he approached Denevan, who came back and hit him, “and the fight broke out,” the affidavit relates.
Justin reportedly told detectives that Denevan hit him more than he hit Denevan, and that Justin hit Denevan “mostly on top of the head.”
“Justin Dollard denied grabbing or hitting Denevan’s neck,” says the affidavit, adding that Justin described his interaction with Denevan as wrestling, since Denevan was “little and I’m big.”
People started to pull them apart, and Richard Dollard “pulled Denevan back to deescalate the situation,” according to that interview.
“Justin Dollard stated he then saw Denevan on the ground and walked away,” the affidavit says.
Jesse Dollard’s Interview
Jesse Dollard met with detectives and gave his own interview, which aligned with much of what his father had said.
Denevan had been calling Jesse names and challenging him to a fight, the latter reportedly said. Denevan then turned his attention to Justin, removing his hat and glasses before throwing a punch, the document relates.
“Dad gets hot-headed,” Jesse reportedly said, adding that, “Dad went after it.”
Jesse described trying to break the fight apart, and “Uncle Deak” trying to deescalate it, because he’s “trained in deescalation,” the document says.
“Jesse Dollard stated he saw Denevan was not getting back up after the incident,” says the affidavit, adding that the three men left the bar after they started getting death threats.
All These Cameras
LPD asked the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation for help the next day.
DCI Agent Brady Patrick reviewed surveillance video, bystander cellphone video and body-worn camera videos, the affidavit says.
From his review, wrote Patrick, Jesse Dollard became visibly upset and gestured toward Denevan’s location. Jesse Dollard “was then held back by several bar patrons,” after which Justin Dollard approached Denevan as the latter removed his hat and glasses.
The two men “appear to argue,” wrote Patrick. While Denevan motioned toward Jesse Dollard, Justin Dollard shoved Denevan in the chest with both hands, the agent added.
Denevan fell backward against the wall, then advanced toward Justin Dollard as many people tried to separate the pair, reportedly.
The affidavit says Jesse Dollard passed by his father and started punching Denevan as the latter punched back. Bystanders then restrained Jesse, and Justin started punching Denevan, the document adds.
The group of between eight and 10 people kept fighting — as Deak Dollard entered the area, the affidavit says.
Deak Dollard put his left arm around Denevan’s neck and moved him to the side, clasping his hands in what Patrick described as a “rear naked chokehold.”
Deak held the chokehold for 26-27 seconds before appearing to fall toward the opposite wall and release his grip, the affidavit alleges.
During the alleged chokehold, Justin Dollard was pulling on the hood of Denevan’s sweatshirt, which was looped over his head — an act that pulled Denevan’s head and neck in the opposite direction from Deak’s grip, wrote Patrick.
When Deak released Denevan, Denevan fell to the floor, the document says.
Witnesses told investigators Justin Dollard kicked Denevan in the torso while the latter lay on the floor, reportedly.
The three Dollards went back to their original position on the other side of the bar, wrote Patrick, adding that, “None of the Dollards attempted to render aid.”
The affidavit notes that Deak “was determined to be employed as a certified law enforcement officer” during the incident.
In the days that followed, a witness said he or she saw all three Dollard men nod or signal in some fashion to each other in agreement just before the fight erupted, the affidavit concludes.
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
