Anchorage man makes court appearance in 2016 murder case

PALMER — Damien A. Peterson, charged with the murder of 16-year-old Frank Woodford, appeared in Palmer Criminal Superior Court via teleconference from Goose Creek Correctional facility Friday morning for the first time since his Feb. 22, 2017, arraignment on multiple felony counts.

The 20-year-old Anchorage man faces charges of second-degree murder, manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide and third-degree assault stemming from the June 27, 2016, fatal shooting of Woodford at a Wasilla residence.

At Friday’s appearance, Judge Jonathan Woodman set an Oct. 13 second pre-trial conference in Palmer Superior Court along with an Oct. 23 trial call. Peterson remains in custody with bail set at $500,000 cash plus a court-appointed third party.

According to court documents, Peterson and Austin Barrett—currently jailed on murder charges in the November of 2016 death of Valley teen David Grunwald, were the only two people in the room when Woodford was shot at a Wasilla residence just after midnight. Both teens told police that Woodford had accidently shot himself with a 10-millimeter Glock pistol.

Alaska State Troopers responded to the scene to find Woodford on the floor of a downstairs bedroom at the residence with a gunshot wound to the chest. He was still alive at the time police arrived and when asked, told troopers he did not shoot himself. When Woodford was told by medics on-scene his wound was fatal and police needed to know what happened, troopers stated Woodford reiterated that he did not shoot himself.

He was medevaced to Anchorage and later pronounced dead. An autopsy conducted following the shooting was inconclusive in determining if the fatal shot was self-inflicted. Police closed the case ruling it an accidental shooting pending further leads. The case was reopened after the Nov. 13 kidnapping and murder of Grunwald.

Since that time, troopers spoke with cooperating witnesses who alleged Peterson accidently shot Woodford. One of those witnesses, believed to be Barrett, also alleges that Peterson threatened to kill him if he told police what he knew.

A grand jury indictment also alleges Peterson "...recklessly placed Austin Barrett in fear of imminent serious physical injury by means of...a pistol." The third-degree assault charge was filed for that reason.

Contact reporter Chris Ford at 352-2270 or chris.ford@frontiersman.com