Jul. 6—OREGON — The attorney for a Mt. Morris man accused of shooting and killing his stepson after an argument in their Mt. Morris apartment in April told an Ogle County judge on Wednesday, July 2, that he needs more time to examine information given to him by prosecutors.
“The state has provided a substantial amount of discovery,” Assistant Public Defender Eric Morrow told Judge Anthony Peska. “It’s going to take me awhile to go through it.”
Derek Swanlund, 45, is charged with first-degree murder in connection with the April 21 death of Cameron Pasley, 25, also of Mt. Morris, in what police described as a “domestic” incident.
Swanlund is facing three counts of first-degree murder and a misdemeanor charge of using a Smith & Wesson 9 mm handgun without having a Firearm Owner’s Identification card.
During an April hearing, prosecutors said the Mt. Morris Police Department responded first to the scene after receiving a 911 call at 4:59 p.m. from Pasley’s mother, in which she said her husband had shot her son.
When a Mt. Morris police officer arrived at the scene, she saw Swanlund walking away from the apartment complex while carrying a black and silver handgun in his right hand, according to police.
Assistant State’s Attorney Melissa Voss said a verbal argument inside the apartment evolved to “shoulder bumping” with Pasley, after which Swanlund shot Pasley.
When more officers arrived at the scene, they discovered Pasley inside the apartment, bleeding from multiple gunshot wounds, Voss said.
Pasley was pronounced dead at OSF Saint Katharine Medical Center in Dixon after being transported from the scene by Mt. Morris EMS.
Pasley’s mother told police she had entered a different room after arguing with Swanlund and after he “belly bumped” her into her son. She then heard Pasley say ‘He shot me’,” Voss told the court.
Morrow said Swanlund had no criminal history other than one misdemeanor charge for which he received and completed court supervision. He said Swanlund had purchased the gun legally when he lived in North Carolina.
In arguing for Swanlund to be released, Morrow said Swanlund had lived in Mt. Morris for 10 years, had been consistently employed while residing there, and cooperated with police when they arrived at the scene.
“He was not aggressive in any way,” Morrow said during the April detention hearing as he argued for Swanlund’s release while his case proceeds through the court system.
Morrow said conditions could be set by the court to enable Swanlund to be released from custody, such as having no contact with the victim’s family, electronic monitoring, home detention, and being ordered to stay out of Mt. Morris.
Voss disagreed, arguing Swanlund “was walking away with blood on his shoes” when he was apprehended.
Peska denied Morrow’s request to release Swanlund from custody, saying an argument “escalated to shoulder bumping and then escalated to retrieving a gun and shooting his stepson” multiple times.
On Wednesday, Peska set the next court hearing for 1 p.m. Aug. 27, and remanded Swanlund to the Ogle County Jail.
Pasley was a 2018 graduate of Oregon High School and a full-time custodian, previously the night custodian at the Blackhawk Center, where the school’s physical education classes and competition basketball and volleyball games are held, and had recently moved to days.