Man accused of shooting at fishermen pleads not guilty to amended charges
The Lincoln County man serving prison time for animal cruelty and witness tampering in that jurisdiction has pleaded not guilty to two counts of assault with a weapon in Flathead County District Court, clearing the way for a late summer jury trial.
Domingo J. Palafox, 31, previously pleaded not guilty to a single count of felony assault with a weapon for allegedly firing a rifle at a pair of anglers on Hungry Horse Reservoir in June 2020. He appeared via video conferencing at a pretrial conference last month, but prosecutors filed amended charges, which included a second count of assault with a weapon, against the Troy man on Aug. 16.
Court documents indicate that the two charges correlate to the two fishermen on the boat, which was nearing Doris Point when Palafox allegedly opened fire.
During his Aug. 19 arraignment in district court, defense attorney Nicholas Aemisegger agreed with prosecutors to set the forthcoming jury trial for Aug. 31. Judge Heidi Ulbricht, who is presiding over the case, issued an order for transport to bring Palafox back to Flathead County from the Montana State Prison.
About the time Palafox allegedly opened up on the pair of anglers, who fled the gunshots, authorities in Troy were investigating an animal cruelty case that had sparked public outrage. Eventually, two men stepped forward with evidence that linked Palafox to a badly burned dog, which had turned up wandering around the small Lincoln County community earlier in the year. Palafox had previously threatened to take out a bounty if they aided investigators.
Palafox later pleaded guilty to an aggravated animal abuse charge and was found guilty of the tampering charges during a bench trial in late 2020. The dog, renamed Percy and rehabilitated, found a new home in Canada.
Authorities in Flathead County secured a warrant for Palafox for the Hungry Horse Reservoir incident about a year after his cases in Lincoln County wrapped up. According to court documents, Palafox admitted to shooting at the anglers during the subsequent investigation. A witness told investigators that Palafox meant to scare off the fishermen, court documents said.
Palafox was expected to be in Flathead County on Aug 23. Court officials are planning on a three-day trial.
Assault with a weapon carries a maximum penalty of 20 years behind bars and a fine of $50,000.
News Editor Derrick Perkins can be reached at 758-4430 or dperkins@dailyinterlake.com.