Cops and Courts

A 24-year-old Missoula man who stabbed a University of Montana student at a house party last September was sentenced Thursday to 15 years on probation and 30 days in jail. He also endured sharp rebukes from the victim’s family members, who gave emotional testimony at the court hearing.

Collan J. Sheppard nearly killed a man during a dispute over the rules of a drinking game called beer pong, and accepted a plea agreement in May that helps him avoid a prison term. He pleaded guilty to felony charges of assault with a weapon and criminal endangerment, and misdemeanor counts of criminal mischief and negligent endangerment.

In exchange for the guilty pleas, prosecutors agreed to dismiss a more serious charge of attempted murder, and recommended a more lenient sentence.

Sheppard appeared for the afternoon sentencing hearing in 4th Judicial District Court dressed in a blue-collared shirt and stood alongside his defense attorney, Lance Jasper. He spoke slowly and deliberately when he apologized for his crime.

“I’m sorry any of this happened, and I wish every day that it did not happen,” Sheppard told the court. “But it did, and I’m sorry.”

The victim, Jerry Brady Stewart, 19, of Butte, was not present at the hearing, but family members who attended spoke on his behalf. The victim’s mother, Sherrie Stewart, said she wanted to see Sheppard go to prison the the rest of his life, but would rather accept a plea agreemeent than have her son endure the stress and uncertainty of a criminal trial.

According to witnesses, Stewart was at a party on Cleveland Street with friends when Sheppard and another guest began arguing about the rules of beer pong. Stewart confronted Sheppard after argument had escalated, and Sheppard pulled out a knife and cut him across the abdomen, from side to side. He also stabbed him in the arm and severed an artery; family members said Sheppard only survived because friends applied pressure to the gaping wounds and helped contain his internal organs.

“You stabbed Brady’s stomach so badly that Brady was literally holding his intestines in his hands,” Ms. Stewart said at Thursday’s hearing. “My son said he felt like he was being gutted like a deer . . . I hope Brady haunts your thoughts for the rest of your life and I hope that you rot in hell.”

Stewart has undergone multiple surgeries and will suffer lifelong complications due to the stabbing, including hernias and problems digesting food.

Stewart’s father, Jerry Stewart, read a statement from his son, who he said “just couldn’t mentally be here today.”

“Sheppard tried to kill me and it haunts me every night,” Stewart says in the brief statement. “I will never be the same again.”

Mr. Stewart said he could not understand why Sheppard never apologized to his family during the lengthy criminal litigation process, and never offered financial assistance during the expensive medical procedures.

The plea agreement also demands that Sheppard make restitution payments of nearly $100,000, including $69,000 to be paid within two weeks of the sentencing.

Before sending Sheppard off to jail for the 30 days, District Judge John Larson warned the man that probation violations would not be tolerated, and that he could easily wind up in prison for any infractions.

“There will be no tolerance for deviation. That is part of the price that you have to pay. You’re going to be held accountable, and you’re going to be supervised,” Larson said.

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