Bend man gets 8 years in Newport Avenue shooting

A 24-year-old Bend man who was convicted of firing an AK-47 semi-automatic rifle into the street after a northwest Bend street fight last April in which two people were wounded was sentenced Tuesday to more than eight years in prison.

Walker Owen Henneke received a 100-month sentence from Deschutes County Circuit Judge Bethany Flint for the April 24, 2016 shooting after an argument that turned into a street fight. He also was ordered to pay $35,000 in restitution to the victims.

Last week, on the eve of a scheduled trial on several attempted murder charges, Henneke agreed to a conditional guilty plea, known as an Alford plea, on two counts of first-degree assault and one count of unlawful use of a weapon. In an Alford plea, a defendant does not admit guilt, but only acknowledges that a jury trial likely would bring a conviction, based on the evidence.

District Attorney John Hummel said, Henneke apparently was upset early that Saturday morning that a group of people walking home from downtown “made a bit of noise as they passed by his house on Newport Avenue.”

A fight ensued, involving Henneke, his roommate and the people who were walking Hummel said. After the fight, Henneke came out of his house “and sprayed the scene with shots from his semi-automatic rifle,” the DA said.

Wounded were Blake Blevins, then 32, of Bend, and California resident Eric Menezes, 31, who police said were among the five people walking north along Northwest 15 th Street near Newport Avenue when the encounter began around 2:40 a.m.

Menezes spoke at the sentencing, saying how the incident has affected him. He said his work and personal life are still altered, and he will soon need another surgery because of the shooting.

Blevins said he did not want to attend the sentencing because of the trauma it still stirs up, but he told NewsChannel 21 by phone that he thought the ruling was fair, and that he feels for Henneke’s family. He also said he is no longer mad at Henneke and forgives him for his actions.

The judge went along with the prosecution’s recommendation of a 100-month prison term, with credit for time served and “good time” earned only on the last 10 months, followed by three years of post-prison supervision. He will have to forfeit seized firearms and is ordered to have no contact with the victims.

In the guilty plea petition he signed, Henneke acknowledged he could have faced up to 45 years in prison and an $875,000 fine if he had been convicted of the initial charges,.

In the courtroom, Henneke said how sorry he was for his actions. He said when the shootings happened, he was close to blacking out from alcohol and thought his friends were in trouble.

Hummel said in his news release, “Our criminal justice system needs to be smarter with how we handle relatively low-level criminal offenses that are caused by addiction and/or mental illness.

“But if you shoot up a street in Deschutes County with your assault rifle and take out two people in the process, me and my deputies will work our tails off to put you away in prison,” the DA added.

Hummel credited Bend police and Deputy DA Kandy Gies for working together “to produce a top-notch investigation and prosecution. Because of their great work, last week, on the eve of trial, the defendant accepted the deal that resulted in today’s sentencing hearing.”