According to court documents, on Nov. 2, officers were dispatched to the parking lot of Meadowview Apartments in Hibbing, around 2:15 a.m.
There were reports of gunshots.
When officers arrived, they found 24-year-old Parker Charles Johnson lying on the ground next to a truck with multiple gunshot wounds. One was in his upper chest and the other in his abdomen.
Johnson was allegedly semi-conscious, bleeding from the mouth, though he was looking around, moving his head, and jaw when officers began life-saving efforts until emergency medical personnel arrived.
Johnson was pronounced dead at the scene.
Officers found a shotgun on the ground near the victim’s body and several spent 9 mm cartridge casings on the ground nearby.
Investigation
During the investigation, officers learned that Johnson had been at a local bar, followed by a party at the Meadowview Apartments prior to the incident.
A witness told authorities that he had seen a man in a Deadpool sweatshirt, pointing a gun and firing it three times in the Meadowview Apartments parking lot.
The witness noted that he thought the man was just drunk and firing rounds into the woods, and then later saw the man in the hallway of the apartment complex, near the entrance of the apartment where the party took place.
The witness also stated that the man was still at the apartment when officers arrived and found Johnson. The man firing the gun was later identified as Dale.
Dale’s statements
According to court documents, Dale initially told law enforcement that he was in the building at the time of the gunshots. He stated that he heard the gunshots but didn’t know what was going on at the time.
Dale allegedly began to laugh during the conversation.
Dale then claimed that he wasn’t aware if he had been around the victim that night, adding that he might have seen him at the bar but wasn’t sure.
He stated that when officers arrived at the scene, he had exited the party to vape. Body camera footage shows that when authorities arrived on scene, Dale was wearing a Deadpool hooded sweatshirt, but then took it off and gave it to someone.
Dale then left the apartment complex, but after the later witness’s statement, he was determined as the potential shooter, and officers requested that Dale provide an additional statement at the police station.
Dale’s second statement
At the police station, Dale was read the Miranda warnings and provided the following statement:
According to court documents, Dale stated that he went out the previous night and went to a pub around 9 p.m., and then went to an afterparty at the Meadowview Apartments.
He described himself as intoxicated but stated that he had sobered up with the “scary situation”.
Dale then stated again that he had gone outside to vape when officers arrived on the scene.
Dale stated that he heard gunshots while outside and walked back inside.
When officers asked Dale if he had recently fired a gun, he claimed that he hadn’t for a few months, then when questioned again, claimed that it was within the last week.
Officers asked Dale if he knew the person who was shot, and he claimed that he would have to see a picture to be able to identify him.
Officers told Dale that a person matching his description was observed as the shooter, but Dale claimed that it was not him.
After continuing to question Dale about his weapon, he confirmed that it was a 9 mm, which matched the description of the shell casings found on the scene near the victim, but he did not want to give up his weapon to the police.
After a short break, Dale was informed that self-defense existed as a defense in Minnesota.
Immediately after being told this, Defendant stated, “We are going to stop. I am going to say, yes, I shot him. Yes, I [explicit] shot him, and it has been eating away at me all [explicit] night.”
Dale then provided a new version of events.
Dale’s third statement to law enforcement
Dale said that a person he described as “some white boy at the party” asked him if he wanted to see something funny. Dale said “yes”, claiming he did so because he was “gullible” and that he was “pretty trusting of people.”
Dale believed that other people would come out with them, but once they were outside, he realized only he and the victim, Johnson, were in the parking lot.
Dale told officers that he was uncomfortable, so he unclipped the belly band from his gun, which he was carrying. He claimed that he did not draw the firearm, but wanted to be prepared.
Dale stated growing up in Seattle, “you see this kind of stuff,” and he got a “bad vibe.”
He stated that Johnson then went to the door of his truck and “whipped out” a long gun and pointed it at Dale.
Dale then drew and fired at Johnson. Dale described shooting two or three times.
When describing where he shot Johnson, Dale indicated he put two as close as possible in his direction.
Johnson began to “jostle,” and then he fell to the ground. Dale then went back into the party and tried not to “freak out.”
Dale took the officers through the moments before he shot Johnson.
Dale claimed that Johnson opened the truck door and reached into the truck. Dale claimed that Johnson grabbed the gun and began to pull it out of the truck.
Dale stated he could see the stock before he saw the gun itself. He admitted that he drew his firearm immediately, but stated he did not fire until the barrel was pointed in Dale’s direction.
He stated that after he shot Johnson and told him, “I can’t believe you just pointed that at me.”
Dale stated Johnson looked at him as if Dale “had come there with the intention of doing that or [as if to say] how could you.”
Dale then holstered his firearm and returned to the party, attempting to pretend he was not involved.
Dale then apologized for lying to the officers, stating that he knew Minnesota was “one of those duty to retreat states,” which caused him to believe he would be put in jail.
When describing what he knew about Johnson, Dale stated, “I don’t even know the [explicit] name. I just know it was some white country bumpkin. Just some dude that said, ‘You want to see something funny?’”
When Dale was asked if he attempted to render any assistance to Johnson, Dale stated he did not.
He stated, “When I saw where my bullets hit, I knew he was [explicit]. I stood over him. I looked down at him. I did not want my hand, like my DNA, in the situation.”
Officers obtained security camera footage located near Meadowview Apartments. The security footage contained audio. In the audio of the recording, at 2:13 a.m., a single gunshot can be heard. In the audio then there is then a pause for six seconds, before two shots in rapid succession are heard, contradicting Dale’s version of events, in which he claimed to have shot Johnson immediately after he pointed the gun at him.
Preliminary autopsy
Law enforcement received a preliminary autopsy report of Johnson.
The report indicated that Johnson suffered three gunshot wounds.
One bullet entered the victim’s left perioral region (i.e., his mouth). The bullet then traveled down and to the right, ultimately lodging in Johnson’s right lateral neck.
One bullet entered Johnson’s right upper back. The bullet then traveled through Johnson’s torso before exiting his right chest. This bullet was recovered from the Victim’s truck door.
One bullet entered Johnson’s left midback. The bullet then moved through Johnson’s torso and exited his left abdomen. The bullet was discovered to have struck the area where the truck door’s hinge was located.
When comparing the results of the preliminary autopsy report regarding the gunshot wounds to Johnson, along with the audio of the gunshots heard in the security system, it is apparent that Dale’s third statement, claiming self-defense, is meritless.
From the autopsy and the audio, it is clear that the first shot struck Johnson in the face. Six seconds later, Dale fired another two shots at Johnson’s back.
The shots entered Johnson’s body close in proximity to each other, indicating that Dale and Johnson were in relatively similar positions when the second and third shots were fired.
Additionally, since the bullets entered Johnson’s back, it is clear that Johnson was facing away from Dale when he fired the second and third shots into Johnson’s back.
