BCA agent testifies in Caron hearing

Staff

Published Sunday, December 30, 2001

An agent of the State Bureau of Criminal Apprehension testified Friday in a court hearing for Randall Romeo Caron, accused of stabbing his girlfriend and assaulting police officers in an attempt to escape.

Sunday, December 30, 2001

An agent of the State Bureau of Criminal Apprehension testified Friday in a court hearing for Randall Romeo Caron, accused of stabbing his girlfriend and assaulting police officers in an attempt to escape. He described how the investigation for the alleged assaults by Caron against the police was conducted.

Caron allegedly stabbed his girlfriend Annette Marie Lestrud in her apartment at 210 E. Front St. on Nov. 10. On the following day, Caron allegedly assaulted two Albert Lea Police Department officers with a knife when he was spotted in the woods near Railroad Avenue. One officer shot at Caron twice, and one of the bullets hit his chest. County Attorney Craig Nelson applied first-degree assault charges for both incidents.

In the hearing, the BCA special agent Herm Dybevik testified that the distance between Caron and the officer when the gun was discharged was between four to six feet.

He also described how the investigation and the re-enactment of the shootings were conducted.

According to the testimony, the investigators seized a utility knife Caron allegedly used for assaulting the police officer at the scene. Another knife was also found in a backpack near the scene.

The defense attorney, Chester Swenson, questioned if Caron's action justified the first-degree charge.

The charge requires the use of deadly force. The distance could be an important factor to examine the issue.

Swenson also asked the prosecutor to submit a layout sketch of the alleged assault scene.

Nelson submitted five pieces of evidence for the police assault, including Caron's medical and toxicological reports.

For the stabbing case, Nelson submitted four pieces of evidence that contain the photographs of the Lestrud's injury and a report of another Caron's assault on Lestrud in 1998.

According to the investigation, Caron and Lestrud lived together for about five years until this spring. After a 1998 assault, Caron was sentenced to 60 days in jail with a two-year stay. The sentence also required Caron to take part in a domestic abuse and intervention program.

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