Sentence issued in shooting

SANDPOINT — A Montana man accused of opening fire on two people during a night of heavy drinking has been given a suspended prison sentence.

Homer James Shinn IV apologized for his actions when he was sentenced in 1st District Court on Jan. 19, court documents show.

Shinn, a 19-year-old from Noxon, was charged with two counts of felony assault with a deadly weapon after firing gunshots at two people in the early-morning hours of Aug. 17, 2009, at the Elliott Hotel. The two men were not struck by gunfire, but told police they feared for their lives when Shinn fired the shots from a .22-caliber rifle.

Shinn was apprehended when a Bonner County sheriff’s Emergency Response Team deployed a diversionary device in a window so they could safely rush the hotel room.

A pretrial settlement agreement in the case proposed a suspended prison sentence and credit for jail time served in exchange for a guilty plea on one of the aggravated assault counts. The second count was dismissed.

Judge Steve Verby adopted the terms of the plea agreement and imposed a suspended prison term of 2-5 years. Verby fined Shinn $500 and ordered him to complete 300 hours of community service, court records indicate.

Shinn was further ordered to pay $500 in defense costs and placed on probation for three years.