Man accused of killing 2 seeking lower bail
Published 9:58 am Monday, December 17, 2012
LITTLE FALLS — The Little Falls man accused of killing two teenage cousins is expected to ask a judge to lower his $2 million bail.
Sixty-four-year-old Byron David Smith has a court hearing set for Monday afternoon.
Smith told police he shot and killed 18-year-old Haile Kifer and 17-year-old Nick Brady after they broke into his home on Thanksgiving. He’s charged with two counts of second-degree murder.
Sheriff Michel Wetzel has said homeowners have a right to protect themselves, but that Smith used excessive force. Prosecutors say Smith executed the teens even after they’d been incapacitated by earlier shots.
Wetzel says property found in the vehicle that Kifer and Brady drove to Smith’s home contained items from at least one other Morrison County burglary.