One Morning in Wilton – Part I
By Tom Dickson
Wilton , North Dakota . Population : 711 . A town divided in two parts . Two different counties butting up against each other . Not meeting but rather colliding at Main Street .
Burleigh County runs south to Bismarck , the state capital . Settled by Swedish immigrants . Hard-working farmers . Now , mostly government jobs in Bismarck . Government lives . Government health insurance . Rock-ribbed Republicans . Anti-union .
McLean County runs to the north . Lignite country . Coal country . Populated by later -arriving Ukrainians . Vanishing jobs . Vanishing lives . Vanishing dreams . Roosevelt Democrats turned flag-waving Trump Republicans .
While the fault line separating the two counties had remained buried for three generations , one summer day it would rupture to the surface . On Aug . 2 , 1998 , a body was found east of town , right on the county line . It was partially hidden among the spoil piles left behind by the draglines used to strip the coal buried beneath the surface years earlier .
Piles of dirt and rock , now overgrown with trees and shrubs planted by the local wildlife club and the Game and Fish Department to provide wildlife habitat . Cottonwoods , green ash , buffaloberry , chokecherry , and other scrub trees . But on the northern prairie , our very own Sherwood Forest .
The body was Jared Schmitz . Eighteen years old . A Burleigh County boy . Shot six times in the back . Jared had likely been there more than once . The secluded area , known as the Wilton Mine , was a convenient gravel source for local road projects , but also a cozy lovers ’ lane for teenagers groping for their first kiss . And a readymade moto-cross track for daredevil little boys on their dirt bikes . And also a shooting range for older boys plinking at Coke cans with their dads ’ . 22s . Jared had probably done all of those .
ln a small town , there are no secrets . Wilton is no different . Everybody ’ s business is everybody ’ s business . It ’ s hard to be a teenager in a town with 200 mothers .
This death was no high-speed car crash . No drunken brawl . This was no accident . Six shots in the back . This was murder – and everyone knew the motive . Life ’ s eternal triangle . Jared Schmitz , from south of Main Street , was sleeping with someone ’ s girlfriend . The girlfriend of someone from north of Main Street . Someone from Coal Country . In Coal Country , a casual insult buys you a bar fight .
But sleeping with someone ’ s woman takes the insult to a whole other level .
Because the body was found near the county line , criminal jurisdiction was unclear . Both county sheriffs ’ departments were called . In all honesty , there wasn ' t much of an investigation . Everyone knew who did it . It was the boyfriend , 22-year- old Corey Braun . Jared Schmitz had been sleeping with his girlfriend . Pick Corey up . Bring him in .
They found him at his mother ’ s house and took him to the Wilton Police Department . The Wilton Police Department has two rooms : the reception area and the chief ’ s office . The Wilton Police Department has one police officer : the chief . Because the body was found outside city limits , the chief had the good sense to stay out of the way . But he did volunteer his office for the questioning . Burleigh County had the most manpower and resources , and they took the lead . Burleigh County had two detectives in Wilton that morning , deputies Brian Hulst and Peter Briske . They were both big , burly men . Their size was their personality . Strong , loud , authoritative voices .
The chief ’ s office was small and crowded . The two deputies and Corey were crowded around the chief ’ s desk , a small tape recorder sitting in the middle . After the initial pleasantries , the deputies got down to business . The time for small-town banter was over . It was “ confession time .”
Deputy Hulst told Corey that he was free to leave . Free to leave . But it got serious when he pulled out his Miranda card .
“ You have the right to remain silent . Anything you say can , and will , be used against you . If you cannot afford an attorney , one will be appointed for you by a court of law . Do you understand those rights as I have read them ?”
“ Yes .”
“ Are you waiving those rights ?”
“ What does that mean ?”
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