Overview

• Michael Paul Brown was charged with four counts of deliberate homicide plus attempted arson, theft and eluding, with court documents alleging he tried to set objects ablaze inside The Owl Bar.
• Defense attorney Walter Hennessey entered a not-guilty plea on Brown’s behalf during a Sept. 3 hearing held by video from the Butte jail, and a trial is scheduled for Jan. 12, 2026.
• State District Judge Jeffrey Dahood ordered Brown held without bail, replacing an earlier $2 million bond and citing public safety and mental-health issues raised by the defense.
• Deer Lodge County Attorney Morgan Smith said a decision on pursuing capital punishment remains pending, and executions in Montana have been paused since 2015 under a lethal-injection ruling.
• Authorities say Brown fled after the Aug. 1 shootings, stole and ditched a truck, hid in nearby forest for a week, and was captured Aug. 8 in Stumptown as investigators review whether anyone aided him.