By Josh Margolis
HAVRE, Mont. (NMB) – A Havre man accused of killing a fellow inmate of the Hill County Detention Center in November 2019 pleaded guilty to deliberate homicide on Monday in Hill County District Court.
Jesse Shane Valdez, who was 24 at the time of the incident, admitted to attacking and killing 57-year-old Gordon Cochran in a fight on November 17th, 2019. At the hearing, Valdez said he didn’t intend to kill Cochran, but was trying to injure him.
The count of deliberate homicide Valdez pleaded guilty to is slightly different than the original deliberate homicide charge. The initial charge said that Valdez “purposely or knowingly caused the death of Gordon Cochran.” The charge that Valdez pleaded to says that he “committed the offense of aggravated assault against Gordon Cochran and in the course of the aggravated assault, the Defendant caused (the victim’s) death.”
District Court Judge Ashley Harada presided virtually from the Yellowstone County Courthouse.
The state of Montana is recommending Valdez be sentenced to the Montana State Prison for 100 years, with no time suspended. The defense is free to argue for any legal sentence.
Harada noted during the hearing that if she doesn’t follow sentencing recommendations or rejects the plea deal, Valdez could withdraw his plea. Harada said she will defer the acceptance of the plea deal until the completion of the pre-sentence investigation.
The sentencing hearing has not been scheduled, but is expected to take place in late February or early March. Harada said she would like everyone to appear in-person for the hearing. The state has said they are expecting to have three or four witnesses speak at the hearing. The defense did not say if they intend to have witnesses.
Valdez and his attorney Jay Reno appeared virtually from the Hill County Detention Center. Valdez’ other attorney, Amanda Gordan, appeared virtually, as did Assistant Attorney General Stephanie Robles, who has been assigned as Special Deputy Hill County Attorney for this case along with Daniel Guzynski. Guzynski did not appear at the meeting. Hill County District Court Deputy Clerk Karen Kinsella was in the Hill County Courthouse for the proceedings.
Reno said during the hearing that Valdez wanted to take responsibility for his actions and did not want to proceed to trial.
The case was scheduled to go to trial this week before Valdez decided he would plead.
If the case had gone to trial, the defense had planned to offer the jury the option of finding Valdez guilty of the lesser included offense of mitigated deliberate homicide. They also had the option of providing the jury with lesser included offenses of aggravated assault and/or criminal endangerment.
Valdez had been facing charges of felony burglary, as well as criminal mischief and trespassing, at the time of the incident. This case is still pending and is based on allegations that on November 13th, 2019, Valdez broke into a Havre residence, causing damage to glass and wood.
Valdez also faces the possibility of a revocation of a previously deferred sentence on felony aggravated assault over an incident alleged to have occurred in December 2017. An affidavit filed in that case alleges that Valdez gave the victim a concussion, a broken nose, several abrasions, and two black eyes. In the summer of 2018, Valdez was given a three year deferred sentence after pleading guilty to felony aggravated assault. In the Judgment, District Court Judge Daniel Boucher said that if he were to violate the terms, he could face the maximum sentence allowed by law for the felony.
A status hearing for the burglary and assault cases has been scheduled for March.
