East Huntingdon man accused of shooting at troopers now charged with attempted homicide

A number of new charges, including attempted homicide, were filed Wednesday against an East Huntingdon man who was wounded in an encounter with state troopers.

James R. Miller Jr., 61, sat in a wheelchair during his arraignment on the new complaint in district court. State police withdrew the original, less serious charges that were levied Jan. 31, three days after authorities said Miller shot at two troopers who were investigating a report of gunshots in the neighborhood.

Miller is now charged with attempted homicide, aggravated assault, discharge of a firearm into an occupied structure and related offenses.

Defense attorney Jill Devine tried unsuccessfully to get Miller released on nonmonetary or nominal bond, arguing that he is a retired carpenter who legally owned the guns and has never missed a court appearance. Miller admitted during his arraignment to abusing alcohol and drugs.

District Judge Charles D. Moore said the magnitude of the charges Miller is facing led him to keep bail at $500,000, which is what was set in the original case.

“I’m going to stick with the half a million dollar bond,” Moore said.

Assistant District Attorney Chuck Washburn argued for that amount or higher, or no bond at all.

“The night in question … there was at least one crack pipe within in the residence,” Washburn said, adding that Miller had multiple illicit substances in his system. “Our concern, obviously between his addiction issues, his mental health, his access to guns, is that he is a danger to the community.”

Two troopers responded around 9:30 p.m. Jan. 28 to homes across Route 819 from West Overton Village. A neighbor who lives diagonally from Miller reported hearing five or six shots and glass breaking and found a bullet fragment in the attic, according to a criminal complaint.

When police went to Miller’s home, he came outside with an assault-style rifle.

Troopers said they retreated and ordered him to put down the weapon, but Miller fired the gun while the troopers were 7 to 15 yards away. Miller was shot in the torso by return fire from the troopers’ handguns.

He was taken to a hospital by Mutual Aid Ambulance.

Police said they recovered an AR-15 rifle and shotgun from the yard, according to court papers. Also recovered were multiple pieces of drug paraphernalia inside the house, according to court papers.

Spent shell casings were found around the property, including in the area of a pickup that had bullet holes in the windshield.

“The vehicle was in direct line of sight from Miller’s property to (the neighbor’s), and did not have a sufficient backstop preventing rounds being fired into the vehicle from traveling beyond the vehicle or stopping a bullet’s trajectory,” police wrote in court papers.

The neighbors told police they didn’t have any ongoing feud with Miller. No one else was hurt.

From his hospital bed two days later, Miller told police he shot several rounds at the pickup before going back into his house, according to court papers. He didn’t remember troopers coming to his door.

Authorities learned from a witness Miller had been at a bar earlier on Jan. 28 and talked about guns and hurting people, according to court papers. Police found several text messages on his cell phone in which he was threatening to kill two people between 7:30 and 9 p.m. that day.

Miller was arraigned on the original complaint Feb. 1. He’s been at the Westmoreland County Prison since Feb. 22, according to jail records.

A preliminary hearing on the new complaint is set for March 20.