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FORT WAYNE - Chris William Dean sat calmly listening as a federal judge read the charges and possible sentences facing him if he is convicted of making a bomb that killed a 17-year-old Vermont boy.
When U.S. Magistrate Roger B. Cosbey asked if Dean understood he could be given the death penalty if found guilty, Dean said, "Yes, sir."
Dean, 35, of CR 600E, Pierceton, faces federal charges of interstate transportation of explosives with intent to kill or injure, and placing an explosive device on an airplane knowing it could endanger the safety of the plane.
In his first court appearance in U.S. District Court Monday, Dean and his court-appointed attorney, Patrick Arata, asked for a probable cause and detention hearing.
At the hearing, scheduled for Wednesday at 10 a.m., 'We have to show probable cause a crime has been committed and that he's the one who committed the crime,' Assistant U.S. Attorney David Miller said.
Dean is currently being held in Allen County Jail without bond.
Dean is accused of making a pipe bomb that killed Christopher Marquis Thursday at his home in Vermont.
The bomb exploded while Marquis was opening it in his bedroom, killing him and seriously injuring his mother, Sheila Rockwell. The package was delivered by United Parcel Service.
The federal government claims Dean became enraged when Marquis allegedly defrauded him in a deal to trade CB radio equipment. Dean and Marquis were allegedly conducting their business over the Internet.
Dean allegedly used the Internet for information on how to make a pipe bomb. According to a federal affidavit, a Dean acquaintance told officials that Dean said he 'was going to send the guy a package in the mail and, boy, is he going to be surprised.'
Dean was arrested Friday in Winona Lake after Rockwell reportedly told police Dean was angry with her son about the deal that went bad.
Judge Cosbey read through the charges facing Dean and explained the possible sentences Dean would face if convicted. According to the charge of making the explosive with the intent to kill that results in death, Dean could face life in prison or the death penalty if he is found guilty.
If the court finds Wednesday that there is probable cause to hold Dean for trial, Dean will be sent to Vermont within 10 days. If Dean pleads guilty to the charges, he could stay in Indiana and face his punishment here. But if the issue goes to trial, the trial will take place in Vermont, said Miller.
As a U.S. marshall handcuffed Dean after the hearing and led him away, Dean's mother, Grace Lussmyer, broke into tears. The family declined to comment after the hearing.
A neighbor of Dean, Andrea Baker, described him as "a nice guy. You never thought he'd do something like that, if he did it."
Along with other neighbors and residents of Pierceton, Baker said, "I won't say [he's guilty] until it's [the investigation] complete. ... The people who knew him were shocked [at Dean's arrest]."
Looking at the house Dean rented from Baker's uncle, she said that she saw nothing out of the ordinary with Dean while he lived there.
Now that the peace and quiet of the Pierceton community has been shaken, Baker said she thinks neighbors may start looking at each other differently. While those on the rural road look out for each other and their property, she fears they may start looking with more suspicion.
