N.F. killer denied parole

An Oklahoma man convicted in Flathead County of the brutal 1979 murder of Roy Cooper was denied release from prison Tuesday afternoon in a unanimous decision by the state’s parole board.

J.R. Fletcher, 59, won’t again be considered for parole until November 2014, said Craig Thomas, the board’s executive director.

Fletcher, who was convicted of deliberate homicide, was sentenced in September 1979 to 100 years in prison for torturing and murdering Cooper at his Polebridge-area home.

The three-member parole board denied Fletcher’s release for several reasons, including that it would be a detriment to both Fletcher and society, the severe nature of his crime, a history of escape, a criminal record that goes back to 1967, and community opposition.

“Release at this time would be disruptive to the community due to the heinous nature of the crime and colossal opposition,” the board’s decision read.

Cooper’s family members and friends have campaigned against Fletcher’s release at past hearings, and the board received a “tremendous” number of letters from the community opposing his parole, Thomas said.

Flathead County Attorney Ed Corrigan made the trip to the state prison in Deer Lodge for the hearing, where he testified against Fletcher’s release.

Fletcher, his wife and another man were attempting to flee to Canada when their truck became mired in mud in Cooper’s Polebridge-area driveway on April 7, 1979.

The three were on the run from authorities in Oklahoma, where Fletcher had broken parole before fleeing to Montana.

While Cooper tried to pull out the truck, Fletcher, Teresa Jean Fletcher, and Ronald L. White conspired to steal his horses.

After forcing Cooper — whom they had awakened for help — to saddle the horses they intended to steal, the three held him at gunpoint while they broke into area homes.

Before they left, Fletcher and his co-defendants held Cooper hostage in his own residence while torturing and robbing him. Fletcher eventually stabbed Cooper, who died from knife wounds to his neck.

All three later were arrested after a shoot-out with law enforcement officers in Idaho.

Fletcher, who when convicted threatened to kill Cooper’s family, also was ordered to serve prison time for an October 1981 escape attempt and the possession of a deadly weapon by a prisoner.

Teresa Fletcher, 56, was convicted of mitigated deliberate homicide and sentenced to 40 years in prison. White, 51, was convicted of aggravated kidnapping and sentenced to 75 years in prison.

Reporter Nicholas Ledden can be reached at 758-4441 or by e-mail at nledden@dailyinterlake.com