Ward County Assistant State’s Attorney Leah Viste has moved to amend terrorizing charges against Pierce Alan Harris, 32, because one of the alleged victims in the nearly 3-year-old case has died and the alleged victim’s wife, who was a witness, now wants nothing to do with the case.

Harris is charged with two Class C felony counts of terrorizing and is accused of pointing a pellet gun at a man in the Minot Burger King parking lot on Oct. 30, 2018, during a dispute. A woman and her family were eating inside the restaurant and reportedly witnessed the parking lot incident. The woman claimed that Harris then pointed the pellet gun in her direction and she saw it from inside the restaurant. An officer who testified at a preliminary hearing for Harris said the pellet gun resembled a real gun and the alleged victims would have believed it was a real gun.

The case has been delayed and multiple prosecutors have been assigned to handle it. It was finally scheduled to go to trial this Aug. 3. Viste filed to amend the charges against Harris on July 22 and Harris requested a change of plea hearing for Tuesday. The case was put before Judge Doug Mattson, who said he isn’t familiar with the case, isn’t comfortable handling it, and any change of plea should be put before Judge Gary Lee, the trial judge. Mattson also noted that a terrorizing charge involving a firearm carries a minimum mandatory two-year sentence under state law, though he said prosecutors do have ways to get around that requirement. Viste, who inherited the case from a previous prosecutor, said she would try to get a change of plea hearing scheduled before Lee.