Idaho Falls shooting suspect in court as police give more details

IDAHO FALLS (KIFI) - The suspect in a fatal Idaho Falls shooting and standoff on March 9th made his first court appearance Friday.

23-year-old Lance Broncho (pronounced “Bronco”) has been charged with five felonies:

• First-degree murder
• Aggravated battery
• Robbery
• Burglary
• Unlawful possession of a firearm

Local News 8 was not only in court for Broncho’s appearance, but first on-scene at the shooting and the standoff. Local News 8 has also obtained the criminal complaint against Broncho and the probable cause affidavit.

Broncho appeared in court via Zoom from the Bonneville County Jail. He was in visible pain from a gunshot wound in his left hand allegedly obtained Saturday night. He was assigned two public defenders and given a no-contact order “regarding individuals listed in the affidavit,” the judge said.

That affidavit alleges Broncho broke into Eric Leask’s house wearing a mask and using a sledgehammer. He then took out a handgun and shouted, “Give me everything!”

Leask and his fiancee’s adult son, Ormead Smith, allegedly fought with Broncho until he opened fire “several times,” the affidavit reads. Smith was shot in the hand and leg, while Leask was hit in the upper chest.

Broncho was also shot at some point during the struggle. Leask later died at the hospital.

Police believe Broncho meant to rob a different house. But first-degree murder does not have to be premeditated in Idaho.

"If you intend to commit certain crimes and it results in death, then that alone - without premeditation - will qualify it for first-degree murder,” explained Bonneville County prosecuting attorney Randy Neal.

“So in Idaho, if it's an aggravated battery on a child, if it's a robbery, it's a burglary, it's a kidnapping, those are the kinds of cases,” he continued. “If you're intending to commit that act, and a death results, that can put it into first-degree murder."

Police believe Broncho did not know the victim. However, while in jail, his mom told him his sister worked with Leask.

“Then you know what?” Broncho later said on a supervised video call from jail. “Guess who I killed? A family friend of mine. They’re my family friend, they’re my sister’s friend. It just gets weirder and weirder.”

Broncho’s preliminary hearing has been scheduled for March 29th.