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Norwood sentenced for murder

Johnny Cleveland Norwood will serve about 25 years in prison for the Nov. 29, 2015 murder of Rodger Falana.

Norwood, 27, entered Alford pleas to Class AA felony murder and Class A felony attempted murder on Thursday before Judge David Nelson.

Following the negotiated plea deal, Nelson sentenced him to 40 years on the murder charge, with a requirement that he serve 25 years, followed by five years of supervised probation. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison, concurrent with the sentence, for shooting and injuring a 43-year-old woman on the same night. Under state sentencing guidelines, Norwood will have to serve at least 85 percent of the sentence. Norwood was also ordered to pay restitution of $14,275.80 to Falana’s cousin for burial expenses and restitution of $8,468.96 to the Crime Victims Compensation Fund for medical expenses for the injured woman.

A third count of reckless endangerment, charging that Norwood fired into a crowd of bystanders, was dismissed under the plea deal.

Norwood said he had nothing to say when Nelson asked if he wanted to make a statement.

The Alford plea means that Norwood disputes some facts of the case but acknowledges he could be found guilty at trial because the state has substantial evidence .

The shooting happened in the alley between the 10 block of 1st Street SW and South Broadway, according to court records, at 3:10 a.m. on Nov. 29, 2015. The incident reportedly had its origin in the Ice Cold Ryders motorcycle club clubhouse located on West Central Avenue before spilling into the nearby alley. Both the victims and the shooter are believed to have been guests of the Ice Cold Ryders and not members of the club. Norwood fled following the incident and was picked up by Las Vegas police in July 2016.

Ward County Deputy State’s Attorney Kelly Dillon told the judge that Norwood shot Falana four times at close range with a high caliber weapon in the alley north of Bremer Bank. Witnesses said he fled and fired behind him. Falana later died of his wounds at the hospital. The 43-year-old female victim, whom the Minot Daily News has agreed not to identify, was shot twice. She said after the shooting that “Longbeach shot me.” Norwood was later identified as a man who goes by the nickname “Longbeach.” The surviving victim identified Norwood and the clothing he had been wearing.

Dillon said police never recovered the murder weapon, but another witness later claimed that a woman gave Norwood a ride away from the scene of the crime and he disposed of the firearm in a southeast Minot location.

“We don’t know for certain what preceded the shooting in the alley,” Dillon told Judge Nelson.

Other witnesses speculated there might have been an argument over “turf” but the state was not able to determine what happened.

Based on court documents filed separately in the case, there were allegations that Norwood is involved with a California gang and the victim, Falana, had been involved with another gang from Florida.

Dillon said that, while they believed they had strong witnesses, there was a chance that a jury might have given weight to the lack of information about what happened before the shooting.

Norwood had a juvenile court conviction for robbery in California and was sentenced to probation. He also had a simple assault conviction in 2013 in Minot Municipal Court and driving offenses, including DUIs and driving under suspension.

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