BILLINGS - An 18-year-old man was charged with deliberate homicide Tuesday in Yellowstone County District for the death last year of a man in the Billings Heights.
Bryce Tyler Blackburn pleaded not guilty to the charge related to the June 6, 2024 death of 55-year-old Denis Lee Osborne in what authorities initially described as a road rage incident.
Blackburn, who was 17 at the time of the incident, was allowed to remain free on his own recognizance pending resolution of the case. Standing Master Brad Kneeland, who presided over the arraignment, noted Blackburn appeared for arraignment voluntarily after being issued a summons, but required that Blackburn submit to GPS monitoring and adhere to other pretrial conditions.
Kneeland rejected a request from a prosecutor for a $100,000 bond noting that prosecutors had previously agreed to an OR release for Blackburn if he responded to a summons without a warrant being issued.
Because he was a minor at the time of the incident, the charging documents outlining the allegations against Blackburn were previously filed under seal and not immediately available Tuesday. But authorities have previously alleged that Blackburn and his brother were involved in a road rage incident that resulted in Osborne's death. Prosecutors said Tuesday that Blackburn's brother has previously been charged in the case, but details of that case were also not immediately available.
A defense attorney said in court Tuesday that if the case goes to trial, Blackburn will assert a defense of justified use of force. He said the confrontation was sparked when a whisky bottle was thrown at the vehicle driven by Blackburn prior to the physical confrontation with Osborne.
The incident happened on Radford Square West in the Billings Heights shortly before 9 p.m. Officers found Osborne with serious injuries at the scene and he died after being taken to the hospital.
A family member of the victim told MTN at the scene that Osborne had yelled at a teen driver to slow down in the residential neighborhood.
RELATED Q2 COVERAGE
'He was beat until he was dead': Family calls for arrest in Billings homicide case
Officials release name of Billings man killed in reported road rage incident
Police: Billings road rage incident results in homicide investigation
