A trial for three Twin Cities residents charged with the double killing of two roofers at an Austin motel will be combined, according to a judge’s ruling this week.

Thursday, January 04, 2001

A trial for three Twin Cities residents charged with the double killing of two roofers at an Austin motel will be combined, according to a judge’s ruling this week.

David Kenneth Christian, Scott Perry Christian and Vernon Neal Powers all will be tried together, according to the order set Tuesday by District Judge Donald Rysavy. Co-defendant Jenea Larae-Nichol Weinand will be tried separately, however. All are residents of St. Paul.

The four are charged in the June 30 shootings at the Downtown Motel that left two St. Paul roofers dead and a third person, Benjamin Moreno Hernandez, injured. Dead were Juan Vincente Ramirez, 41, and Raul Pedro Gutierrez, 26.

The four suspects all were indicted in August on four counts of aiding and abetting first-degree murder in what police called a botched robbery attempt.

A plea hearing for the suspects is scheduled for Tuesday, according to Mower County Court Administrator Patty Ball.

Defense attorneys argued in November to have the trials for the three men split up, while prosecutors argued for a joint trial because none of the suspects were seen as testifying against the others.

In addition to the first-degree murder charges, the four people also have been indicted on four counts of aiding and abetting second-degree murder and one count of aiding and abetting first-degree assault.

The trials have not been scheduled yet by the court.

The two men who were shot to death and the third person who was injured in the early morning incident had traveled to Austin to work as roofers to repair homes damaged in a spring hail storm.

The men were shot after Ramirez reportedly had gone to a motel room to have sex with Weinand and he flashed a large sum of money. According to investigators, Weinand then told Powers and Scott Christian about the cash. A botched robbery was staged in Room 28 of the Downtown Motel in which shots were fired and the suspects fled without getting the money they sought, police said.