Steven Fletcher allegedly tried to shoot ex-girlfriend’s son at apartment complex

STAR JOURNAL REPORT

A $30,000 cash bond was set Monday afternoon in Oneida County Circuit Court for a 46-year-old Rhinelander-area man accused of trying to shoot his ex-girlfriend’s son at an apartment complex in the town of Pelican shortly before midnight Saturday.

Steven J. Fletcher faces felony charges of attempted first-degree intentional homicide and armed burglary as well as misdemeanor counts of possessing a firearm while intoxicated and disorderly conduct. Upon conviction, the attempted murder charge alone carries a maximum possible penalty of 40 years of initial confinement in prison, followed by 20 years of extended supervision.

Fletcher is scheduled to return to court March 20 for his adjourned initial appearance.

In Fletcher’s court appearance Monday via teleconference from the county jail before court commissioner Sven Strutz, assistant district attorney Jillian Pfeifer asked for a $50,000 cash bond, noting she sought a high bond amount in the interest of protecting the public.

Fletcher, who noted he wasn’t working, said he didn’t have $50,000 for bond, but promised to return for his next court appearance when he would have a lawyer.

Strutz set the $30,000 cash bond with the conditions Fletcher have no contact with his ex-girlfriend’s son or his ex-girlfriend as well as not consume alcohol and stay off all premises that serve alcohol.

According to reports from the sheriff’s department included with the criminal complaint, Fletcher was reportedly intoxicated Saturday night when he had driven up to an apartment complex on Cranes Road and fired at least two shots outside.

Fletcher is also accused of having broken into an apartment when he shot at his ex-girlfriend’s son, who then was able to wrestle the gun away from Fletcher and took it to a friend’s apartment. A sheriff’s department report further states that Fletcher’s ex-girlfriend had been asleep in the apartment when Fletcher allegedly broke in and she woke up to loud bangs and screaming before Fletcher ran out of the residence after having his gun taken away.

A sheriff’s deputy who responded to the scene reported finding Fletcher outside smoking a cigarette while sitting on a chair against an apartment building, where he was handcuffed after falling to the ground and taken into custody.

The sheriff’s department investigation at the scene found a bullet entered a coffee table inside the apartment along with a wood splinter and lead fragment in the carpet, while a .22 long rifle casing was also located near the sliding glass patio doors of the apartment, according to a sheriff’s department report.

A Ruger semi-automatic pistol reportedly fired in the apartment and wrestled away from Fletcher was also recovered and taken as evidence.