Connect with us

Courts

La Crosse man gets $1 million bond in north side murder charge

Published

on

A cash bond of $1 million was ordered for the 28-year-old La Crosse man suspected of a fatal shooting in the George Street area this past weekend.

Alland

Cody Alland appeared in court by video Tuesday, from the La Crosse County jail.

Alland is charged with first-degree homicide for the shooting death of Justin Betz. The 42-year-old Betz had been shot once, when police found him in an alley behind a tavern.

He died shortly after being taken to a hospital.

Prosecutor Nick Passe requested the million-dollar bond, saying the shooting was captured on a surveillance video. According to the criminal complaint, a witness who was with Alland says that Alland and Betz had been talking inside the bar early on January 19th. The witness said Alland appeared to be annoyed. The two men did not know each other. Betz left the bar first, and when Alland and his friend left, Betz approached Alland outside. The video reportedly shows Alland drawing a firearm and shooting Betz at least once, before Alland and his friend drove away.

Justin Betz (Contributed photo from La Crosse Police Department)

Defense attorney Christopher Zachar called for a more “reasonable” bond, saying it was Alland’s first appearance ever in court. Judge Gloria Doyle says there is a concern that Alland might flee. Along with the cash bond, Doyle ordered Alland to have no contact with the victim’s family, no contact with bars or taverns, no alcohol, and no weapons, also calling for GPS monitoring and house arrest.

Alland’s next court appearance is scheduled for January 29th.

A native of Prairie du Chien, Brad graduated from UW - La Crosse and has worked in radio news for more than 30 years, mostly in the La Crosse area. He regularly covers local courts and city and county government. Brad produces the features "Yesterday in La Crosse" and "What's Buried on Brad's Desk." He also writes the website "Triviazoids," which finds odd connections between events that happen on a certain date, and he writes and performs with the local comedy group Heart of La Crosse. Brad been featured on several national TV programs because of his memory skills.

Continue Reading
1 Comment

1 Comment

  1. Dylan

    January 22, 2025 at 10:09 am

    Lowered bond… how about no bond… What kind of judge would put a murder back onto the streets.

    Just another day in Vice City/La Crosse

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *