By Sarah Schulz
sarah.schulz@theindependent.com

Gabriel T. Carson, 31, will be arraigned in Hall County District Court April 8 on charges of attempted first-degree murder, two counts of second-degree assault and three counts of using a 9 mm handgun to commit a felony.

He was originally charged with one count of second-degree assault and one count of first-degree assault. The more serious charge was amended following the preliminary hearing in Hall County Court Monday after Hall County Judge Philip Martin said the lesser charge fit the facts of the case as presented in court.

Grand Island police officer Jarret Daugherty was the sole witness called to testify Monday.

He said he went to El Tabares, 106 W. Fourth St., at about midnight on Jan. 25. Two people had been shot inside the bar and officers were looking for three to four suspects, he said.

Daugherty testified that witnesses told officers two shots had been fired from the area of the back door. One of the bullets passed through both of Hector Faz's legs and lodged in the leg of Rosa Barrera-Hernandez, Daugherty said. Both people were seated to the north end of the bar, he said.

According to police, Faz and Barrera-Hernandez were treated ay St. Francis Medical Center and released.

Witnesses told police Jacob Weddle, 22, and Michael Cloud were involved in the shooting. They also described a tall, slender, black man with a tattoo on his neck, later determined by police to be Carson, and another man, later identified as Keith Raker, to be involved in the shooting, Daugherty said.

Police also obtained a description of a vehicle seen leaving the bar and believed it to be similar to a vehicle driven by Weddle. It was later found at Weddle's residence, about four blocks from the bar, Daugherty said.

The incident began when Weddle and Carson decided to buy some cocaine. They went to the Conoco Motel, where they spoke to Kenneth Dandridge. He was unable to provide the drugs, but Cloud "got involved" and it was decided he would go with Carson and Weddle to El Tabares, Daugherty said.

The men, along with Raker, 20, went to the bar, where they contacted Ricardo "Rico" Aguilar. They gave him money for drugs and then played pool. An argument erupted after Carson won the pool game and Aguilar refused to return the money or give the men any drugs, Daugherty said.

Police arrested Carson and interviewed him about the incident. At first he "acted" like he didn't know why he was being detained but once he was told no one had died as a result of the shooting, he "kinda broke down emotionally," Daugherty said.

Carson told officers he, Weddle, Raker, and Cloud left the bar after the argument and went to Weddle's home. Weddle retrieved a 9 mm handgun, which was eventually given to Carson, Daugherty said.

Casings from 9 mm shells were found at the bar, Daugherty said.

The men parked on the street and went to the back door of the bar. Weddle opened the outside door, Raker opened the inside door and Carson entered with the gun. Carson told officers he saw Aguilar walking by and shot at him twice, Daugherty said.

The men left the bar and returned to Weddle's home. His sister, Amanda Weddle, 19, soon arrived and told the men the "police were all over the place and they needed to leave." Carson left in his vehicle and Raker and Jacob Weddle left with Amanda Weddle, Daugherty said.

Jacob Weddle and Raker are each charged with aiding and abetting attempted first-degree murder. Their preliminary hearings are scheduled for 9 a.m. March 21.

Amanda Weddle is charged with being an accessory to a felony. She is also charged with aiding and abetting first-degree murder for the Aug. 12, 2007, death of Faud Osman.

A preliminary hearing for Amanda Weddle for the bar shooting is set for May 1. She is scheduled to return to county court Wednesday for a bond review in the murder case.

She's out of jail on her own recognizance and was ordered by the judge to live with her father in St. Paul. At the time of the bar shooting, she was to be living with her uncle in Palmer.

Two others, Jennifer Ehlers, 20, and John Zechmann, 21, are charged in connection with Osman's murder. Their cases are pending in Hall County District Court.