Judge sends charges to grand jury in Mormon missionaries shooting

CHESAPEAKE, Va. — A judge decided Monday to send to a grand jury first-degree murder and other charges against a man accused of killing one Mormon missionary and wounding another.

Defense attorneys for James R. Boughton Jr., 19, argued during a preliminary hearing that the case was weak because no witnesses testified they saw Boughton shoot the two men.

"This case is as thin as thin can be," attorney Kenneth Melvin said.

General District Court Judge Timothy S. Wright said he agreed with Melvin, but there was probable cause to certify the charges to a grand jury. Wright also denied Melvin's request to set bail for Boughton.

Prosecutor D.J. Hansen said while there were no witnesses, Boughton's DNA was found on the murder weapon, a 9 mm handgun, and that police tracking dogs found a black hooded sweat shirt belonging to Boughton in a shed not far from where the two men where shot.

Witnesses testified that the shooter wore either a black or dark gray hooded sweat shirt.

Boughton is accused of killing Morgan W. Young, 21, of Bountiful, Utah, and wounding Joshua D. Heidbrink, 19, of Greeley, Colo.

Heidbrink testified that he and Young had been going door-to-door evangelizing when they were shot Jan. 2. Heidbrink said he was standing with Young when he heard a shot fired down the street and saw a man with a gun come running toward them.

"I raised both my hands and said, 'Hey, we didn't see anything,"' Heidbrink said. He said he then saw a flash, heard a bang and realized he had been shot. The bullet hit his clavicle just below the neck and went out through his back shoulder.

"I saw Morgan Young on his knees looking at the shooter in the face," Heidbrink calmly testified. He said he heard another pop and a flash and saw Young fall forward on his face, and the shooter ran off. He said he sat up and shook Young and said, "Elder Young, are you awake? Elder Young, can you hear me?"

Heidbrink declined to comment after the hearing.

Prosecutors said a grand jury would consider the charges on July 5.