Wilson sentenced to life in prison for murder of Challis woman
Mark Charles Wilson has been sentenced to life in prison for first-degree murder in the killing of Pat Brown. Judge Steven Thompson sentenced Wilson at the Custer County courthouse Wednesday.
Wilson, 54, was also sentenced to an additional five years for a weapons enhancement in the murder. He must serve a minimum of 30 years before being eligible for parole. Thompson gave him 502 days of served credit.
Wilson must also pay the victims $5,000.
Brown, 75, was found shot and killed March 24, 2018, in a home she and Wilson shared in Challis.
During the sentencing, Wilson’s attorney, James Archibald, had objections to the presentence report. He questioned why a sexual assault charge from 1989 in Michigan was labeled as a felony. Archibald said he served time for a misdemeanor. Labeling the charge as a felony heightened Wilson’s level of service inventory score, or LSI.
Wilson’s LSI score on the presentence report is a 31, which puts him at the bottom range of being “high risk.” Archibald said that if the 1989 sexual assault was not labeled as a felony, Wilson would be considered as “moderate risk.”
Archibald said that if his LSI score is also taken into account where Wilson would be placed in the Idaho Department of Corrections, or IDOC.
Thompson assured Archibald that because of the length of time from the sexual assault charge, the court would not take it into account. Thompson also said that he was going to let IDOC decide if they would like to lower Wilson’s LSI score.
The prosecuting attorney, Justin Oleson, offered a victim impact statement and a witness testimony.
The victim impact statement was from Brown’s grandson, who she adopted. The witness was Brown’s neighbor, who said that they were very close. Both describe Brown as friendly, caring and giving. Brown’s neighbor said that her passing had “an impact on the entire community.”
The state recommended that Wilson be incarcerated for 50 years to life. Oleson said that Wilson’s history was an indication that his sentence should be twice the usual amount of time.
Wilson and his defense team asked the court that he be sentenced to a minimum of 10 years. Archibald said that Wilson’s psychological evaluation shows he is not a threat when he is sober.
Wilson was able to make a statement toward the end of the sentencing. He said that Brown did not deserve what happened to her and that it is his fault. He said that there is no punishment that will be enough for what he now has to deal with every day.
Thompson said he considered all the findings and testimonies in the case, including a letter that Wilson addressed to the court a year ago. Thompson said that Wilson’s previous record is a huge concern for the court. Thompson also pointed out that Wilson has been struggling with an alcohol problem for some time.
Thompson said that he did wonder how long it would be before Wilson would be involved in another offense.
