KALISPELL - A man charged with deliberate homicide after being accused of driving over a pedestrian, causing a fatal vehicle incident on Birch Grove Road, appeared in court on Thursday.
Jeffrey Serio, 48, pleaded not guilty in connection with the death. A judge set Serio's next court appearance for March 9.
Charging documents state that law enforcement responded to a call of a suspicious male on a property on Grigg Road in Flathead County on August 19.
Deputies identified Serio and told him to leave and stay off other people’s property. Serio left the property on foot in the direction of his parked vehicle.
When leaving the area, deputies heard the sound of a vehicle accelerating rapidly through a cornfield. Law enforcement responded to a property and found Serio near the scene.
A person who lives on the property said they heard Serio’s vehicle hit something and heard gunshots.
The person said Serio got out of the vehicle, ran toward the person, and said, “I tried to miss him.”
Law enforcement reported finding the victim trapped underneath the vehicle on the property, and he was pronounced dead.
- information from Maddie Kiefer included in this report
