A change of plea hearing for a man accused of shooting at several buildings housing Homer community organizations was pushed back to July, following a May 29 hearing originally scheduled as a change of plea.
Anchor Point resident Josiah Kelly, 31, is accused of shooting at Kachemak Bay Family Planning Clinic and Kachemak Bay Recovery Connection in three incidents across Oct. 20 and Nov. 11. No injuries were reported in any of the shootings.
According to previous Homer News reporting, a police affidavit included in original charging documents from the arrest says that Kelly told Homer Police that he had shot the buildings because of his “religious beliefs.” Police say a truck connected to Kelly was seen leaving the scene of the third shooting and that a pistol was found under its seat.
Kelly is charged with three counts of second-degree misconduct involving weapons, two counts of first-degree misconduct involving weapons, two counts of third-degree criminal mischief, three counts of third-degree assault and two counts of second-degree terroristic threatening. The charges carry a maximum sentence of up to 115 years.
A plea deal presented in court May 29 would have given Kelly six years and six months, consecutive jail time served with 50 years of probation. Under the agreement, Kelly would plead guilty to two counts of second-degree misconduct involving weapons, one count of third-degree assault and two counts of second-degree terroristic threatening.
Additionally, he would agree to firearm restrictions, provisions involving his mental health conditions and avoiding contact with specific locations and persons while on probation.
From February to April, Kelly underwent a competency trial to determine whether or not he was capable of understanding the criminal proceedings.
According to previous Homer News reporting, public defender Ila Clawson filed a motion for competency evaluation Jan. 9, stating that “there is reasonable cause to believe that Mr. Kelly is presently suffering from a mental disease or defect that causes him to be unable to understand the proceedings against him or to assist in his own defense.”
Kelly was declared competent to stand trial April 4.
Clawson was absent at the May 29 hearing. Instead, Kelly was represented by public defender Matthew Sanford, who told Superior Court Judge Bride Seifert that he and Kelly had not spoken before their appearance that morning in court.
Seifert postponed the change of plea hearing to allow Kelly to consult more thoroughly with Clawson before finalizing his plea agreement. Kelly is currently being held at Wildwood Pretrial Facility in Kenai. He will appear in the Homer courtroom July 2 for a change of plea hearing.
