Grand jury indicts pastor

By STEVE KADEL-Frontiersman reporter

PALMER -- A Big Lake pastor who shot two men allegedly burglarizing Big Lake Community Chapel has been indicted by a grand jury on two counts of manslaughter and two counts of criminally negligent homicide.

Manslaughter is a Class A felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison with a mandatory minimum of five years, said Palmer District Attorney Roman Kalytiak. Criminally negligent homicide is a Class B felony.

Arraignment will be today at 8:30 a.m. in Superior Court before Judge Beverly Cutler. Mielke, who has no criminal history, remains free at least until then.

"He's charged with some pretty serious offenses," Kalytiak said. "The court will have to decide what type of bail is appropriate."

The state is seeking $50,000 bail and release to a third-party custodian.

Kalytiak said the grand jury considered options ranging from a murder charge to a finding of terminating a burglary in an occupied building.

Phillip Mielke is accused in the deaths of Big Lake residents Chris Palmer and Frank Jones, who were confronted inside the chapel at 5 a.m. on April 24. Mielke's attorneys said he fired in self-defense, although a death certificate shows Palmer was shot in the back. Jones was shot in the back and ankle, according to court documents.

The grand jury deliberations were held Tuesday and Wednesday behind closed doors at the Palmer courthouse. Jury members voted Wednesday after hearing eight witnesses, and their conclusions were made public on Thursday.

Mielke was awakened by an alarm in his home and went to investigate at the nearby chapel the morning of the incident. A statement released by his attorneys said "he fired because he felt threatened and thought that he had no safe alternative."

"I am disappointed," Mielke's attorney Jerry Ward said of the grand jury findings. "We will be prepared with a statement after the arraignment."

Palmer had "a number of controlled substances" in his body, according to results of an autopsy disclosed in court documents. A folded knife was in his back pocket.