Parker pleads not guilty to murder, attempted murder
The case against Christopher Parker, the man accused of shooting and killing William Connole and firing at a motorcyclist in 2015, has taken its next major step nearly eight years after the shooting and nearly five years after Parker’s arrest, when he pleaded not guilty Friday morning. His trial, which is expected to span several weeks, will begin in late October.
Parker, 40, appeared before 8th Judicial District Court Chief Judge Susan Blanco Friday morning where he pleaded not guilty to the two charges against him: first-degree murder after deliberation, a class 1 felony; and attempted firstdegree murder after deliberation, a class 2 felony.
Assistant District Attorney Matt Maillaro said the firstdegree murder charge alone carries a prison sentence of life without parole and the attempted murder charge carries a prison range of 16 to 48 years.
Parker’s not guilty plea comes after several hearings where his arraignment had been discussed but no plea had been entered.
It also comes after Parker underwent several weeks of preliminary hearing in late 2022, with Blanco ultimately ruling there was probable cause for both charges.
While Maillaro said he believes the trial will take a total of four weeks, Eric Vanatta, one of Parker’s attorneys, requested that the trial be set for a total of five weeks at the end of the year.
After tolling Parker’s right to a speedy trial until early May — meaning the six-month deadline to begin Parker’s trial won’t start until then — Blanco scheduled Parker to face a jury trial beginning Oct. 23 and concluding Dec. 1.
She noted that the trial will not be held on Thursdays when she has specialty docket days or on Thanksgiving or the day after Thanksgiving, making the trial a total five weeks long despite spanning six weeks.
Blanco also scheduled a number of other hearings to be held throughout 2023 up until the trial, including:
• A status conference at 4 p.m. March 22.
• A status conference at 2 p.m. May 9.
• A four-day motions hearing lasting entire days beginning at 8:30 a.m. June 26, June 27, June 28 and June 30.
• A pre-trial readiness hearing at 2 p.m. Sept. 25.
Parker’s case has been underway since his arrest nearly five
years ago.
A task force was formed to investigate the Connole
shooting and other shootings in 2015, and investigated for nearly three years before arresting Parker on March 13, 2018. According to reporting when the arrest was made, the task force followed more than 5,000 leads, cleared 12 persons of interest and followed up on 14,000 pickup trucks in Larimer and surrounding counties to try to find one believed to have been spotted near the shooting.
The task force formed after an apparent serial shooting spree, but when announcing Parker’s arrest, authorities said the man was accused only in the killing of Connole and of firing a shot at a motorcyclist
about 15 minutes prior to the shooting of Connole.
The delay in his case came from questions regarding his mental competency to stand trial, though court records show he was
ruled competent to proceed in the summer of 2021.
Parker remains in custody at the Larimer County Jail in Fort Collins, and court records show there is no bond set for his charges.