Delling makes court appearance in theft case

BOISE – A man charged in one shooting and suspected in two others was assigned a public defender Monday, and his bond was set at $2 million during his first court appearance on a felony grand theft charge.

Despite the bond, John Joseph Delling will likely remain in jail until his trial on the stolen car charge, Magistrate James Cawthon said, because the 21-year-old is also charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of University of Idaho student David Boss in Moscow.

In addition to Boss’ March 31 slaying, police suspect Delling in the death of Meridian resident and Boise State University student Bradley Morse in Boise a few days later, and the March 20 shooting of University of Arizona student Jacob Thompson. Thompson survived the attack outside his Tucson, Ariz. home. In the grand theft charge, Delling is accused of stealing Morse’s car.

Delling, Boss and Thompson were all former classmates at Timberline High School in Boise. Morse attended high school in nearby Meridian at about the same time as the other three.

In court on Monday, Delling wore a yellow jumpsuit, with his hands cuffed and connected to a waist restraint. He didn’t speak during the hearing, other than to tell the magistrate that he was not familiar with a document outlining his rights. Although the public defender, Reed Smith, told Cawthon that his client would agree to be held without bond on the grand theft charge, Cawthon set bail at $2 million at the request of Deputy Prosecutor Heather Reilly.

Reilly said she made the request simply because Idaho law guarantees defendants charged with certain crimes – including grand theft – the right to bail.