Rochester man faces his alleged shooter in court: 'I am in pain every day'

DOVER — Kyle Violette faced Jason Levesque, the neighbor who is charged with shooting him multiple times, in a dramatic hearing Tuesday in Strafford County Superior Court.

Violette, 37, who is severely injured, spoke from a wheelchair, rejecting claims by defense attorney Mark Sisti, who argued Levesque, 44, should be granted bail and that Violette was the aggressor.

"He is a liar," Violette said, visibly angry. "He shot me with my daughter right beside me, with no provocation."

Levesque has been incarcerated since his arrest April 8, four days after the shooting that was the result of a dispute between neighbors over snow plowing on Summer Street in Rochester, according to police and prosecutors.

Violette, who was assisted with his wheelchair by his girlfriend, Angie LaChance, and his mother, Cyndi Violette, gave a short interview after leaving court. He said he was in a Boston hospital for six weeks, much of that time in intensive care. He said there are still bullets in him that cannot be safely removed, pointing to one in his neck, saying another is near his pelvis and one near his heart.

"I am in pain every day," he said. "The bullets that entered me shattered, turning six shots into 11. I am half crippled, probably forever, and I am afraid I am going to watch him get away with this."

Judge Anne Edwards did not immediately announce a decision on the request to grant bail to Levesque.

The case against Levesque

Levesque has been charged with attempted second-degree murder (Class A felony), second-degree assault (Class B felony), and reckless conduct (Class B felony). Assistant County Attorney Sarah Colleen Deitelhoff told the court that Levesque's case is scheduled to be brought before the July grand jury for possible indictments.

The daughters of both men witnessed the shooting, according to police.

According to a police affidavit at the time of his arrest, Levesque told officers on the night of the shooting he picked up his daughter at a local restaurant where she works and returned home to Summer Street after snow plowing for an extended period of time throughout the day. He told police Violette approached him, got in his face and told him if he plowed snow into his driveway, he would “kill him and his family.” Violette turned to walk away.

Levesque’s daughter was still in the plow truck when Levesque left the truck with a firearm, a Glock 9mm. With the victim about 10 feet away, Levesque pointed the gun at him, according to police. Levesque told police Violette became enraged and came at him, and that is when he fired the first shot, hitting Violette.

When Violette turned away again, holding himself, Levesque said he returned to the truck, placing the gun inside. He said Violette turned to approach again and Levesque fired another shot, downing Violette.

Police allege Levesque then walked over to him and fired multiple shots. This police account cites video of the shooting provided by Violette's daughter.

Police said they recovered six shell casings at the scene. A compilation of multiple videos of the incident was shown to the judge in court Tuesday.

Sisti argues man who was shot six times was aggressor

Sisti told the court Levesque has been detained since April and has not yet been indicted. He asked for a reasonable bail, suggesting a $25,000 surety bond.

After saying that Violette had been the aggressor, Sisti said Levesque reacted to what he perceived to be a clear threat, one in an ongoing saga of bad blood between the two.

"He reacted but after, Jason stayed there until police arrived," Sisti said. "He cooperated. The alleged victim was enraged and threatening Jason for no reason at 10:30 at night, on a cold winter night. He had threatened Jason and his family before. On that night, the night he was shot, he said, 'I am going to get you someday, I will kill you and kill your daughter.' Those are beyond fighting words, a clear threat to the safety of his daughter and him. This is not a slam dunk case."

Deitelhoff countered by saying Levesque was a flight risk, with a past assault record and argued he poses a danger to Violette.

"During that assault, Kyle (Violette) walked away," she said. "He was shot in back. Jason (Levesque) then walked over as he was laying on the ground and fired again. Jason was not threatened with a weapon. The defendants’ own daughter said, at the time (in her statement) that she was not afraid for her life that night."

Sisti argued Levesque is not a flight risk. Deitelhoff said his actions immediately following the shooting speak to his intentions.

"After the shooting, the defendant asked his daughter if he should run," she said. "His first reaction was not to get help, not to call 911. That alone demonstrates a likelihood to support the risk of a failure to appear."

Deitelhoff argued the facts of the case support the request for bail to be denied until trial.

This article originally appeared on Fosters Daily Democrat: Rochester shooting: Kyle Violette faces Jason Levesque in court