Rural Beatrice Man Convicted in Shooting, Resulting in Paralysis

BEATRICE – A rural Beatrice man will be sentenced in January, for a March 2018 shooting that paralyzed another man.
34-year-old Nathan King reached a plea deal with the Gage County Attorney, entering pleas in the shooting of Boston Bieler.

King pleaded no contest to charges of second-degree assault and making a terroristic threat. Charges of attempted second-degree murder and use a firearm to commit a felony were dismissed in the agreement.
King entered the pleas before Gage County District Judge, Rick Schreiner, who set sentencing for January 22nd.

County Attorney Roger Harris said the shooting happened March 11th, 2018, at a home along Southwest 32nd Road. Bieler had been shot in the neck and was found by emergency personnel lying on a porch of the home.

"While Mr. Bieler was in the ambulance he informed law enforcement that Mr. King had shot him in the neck with a handgun. Other eyewitnesses confirmed these facts. The investigation would soon establish that the individuals had consumed alcohol earlier that evening...and after they went to this particular residence, Mr. King had threatened to do physical harm to Mr. Bieler by shooting him with a gun. As Mr. Bieler was leaving the residence, Mr. King went and got a handgun from another room in the home and came to the front door, where he fired a shot through the two front doors".

The bullet traveled through glass in the doors before hitting Bieler.

"Mr Bieler was taken to the Lincoln hospital for treatment....has undergone numerous surgeries as a result of this gunshot by the defendant....is confined to a wheelchair with permanent paralysis from the neck down, with some movement in his arms", Harris said.

King’s attorney, Justin Kalemkiarian said the defense agrees with the essence of the facts in the case.
"I think there are some additional facts. I don't know that it's appropriate for the court to know those right now, but there will be additional facts brought up at sentencing".

Judge Schreiner ordered a pre-sentence investigation of the case. Following Tuesday’s plea hearing, County Attorney Roger Harris said the incident was a tragedy, changing the lives of both the victim and defendant. He said the state consulted with the victim and his family.

"He's an individual that....he's having a lot of difficulty as you could imagine. These people had a relationship, they were friends...before this situation".
Harris said the shooting was the result of people celebrating a birthday, and then things got carried away, resulting in a horrific act. "It's a combination. When you have alcohol in a volatile situation, sometimes people just don't use common sense".

Harris said he will ask for a prison sentence because of the severity of Bieler’s injuries. The prosecutor said Bieler is now living in Kansas. King’s convictions carry a possible term of up to 23 years in prison, with possible post-release supervision.