'Marine of the year' faces attempted murder charge

A decorated Marine, accused of firing a shotgun at a crowd of noisy clubgoers, has pleaded not guilty to attempted murder and other charges and was ordered to be evaluated at a state psychiatric hospital.

Daniel Cotnoir was named "Marine of the Year" last month for his service as a military mortician in Iraq. A mortician by trade, he prepared the bodies of US soldiers for burial and says the job took a heavy psychological toll.

Police said he pointed a 12-gauge shotgun out of the window of his second-floor apartment and fired a shot at a crowd of noisy people leaving nearby nightclubs early on Saturday. Two people were treated at hospitals for leg wounds and released.

Cotnoir, 33, a father of two daughters, told police he feared for the safety of his family after someone threw an empty juice bottle through his bedroom window.

"It was never this man's intention, as he tells me, to hurt anyone," said his lawyer, Robert Kelley. "It was only his intention to fire a warning shot when he was placed in a threatening situation."

A prosecutor said clubgoers had seen Cotnoir standing with his gun at the window over his family's funeral home, but thought the weapon was fake.

Cotnoir was charged with two counts of armed assault with intent to murder, two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, and one count of discharging a firearm within 150 metres of a dwelling.

He met a court-appointed psychologist, and then Judge Thomas Brennan ordered him evaluated at a state hospital. Another hearing was set for September 2.

Last month, Marine Corps Times chose Cotnoir over 180,000 other candidates for its annual Marine of the Year award.

Cotnoir, now a reservist, told the Eagle-Tribune last month that he was getting counselling at a veterans hospital.

"It's a lot harder to talk about the job now than it was at the time to actually do it," he said. "The stories I've gained from my deployment aren't the kind of stories you share."

The shooting victims were identified as Lissette Cumba, 15, and Kelvin Castro, 20.

James Stokes, a retired minister who went to school with Cotnoir's father, said he did not believe Cotnoir was trying to kill anyone.

AP

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