A District Court Judge in Pottawattamie County has sentenced a Council Bluffs man to 30-years in prison for the shooting death of  another man following a verbal confrontation early last March. According to the Omaha World-Herald, 33-year old Christopher Hyde told 4th District Court Judge Timothy O’Grady that he was sorry for the shooting, and “Things got out of hand.”  His comments came after he pleaded guilty to three lesser charges in the case. He had faced first-degree murder charges in connection with the death of 44-year-old Robert Chapin III. Hyde said “Things got way out of hand,” and he wishes he’d have called the police. The judge convicted Hyde on three Class C felonies — willful injury, intimidation with a weapon and assault while participating in a felony. All three crimes carry a maximum prison sentence of 10 years. Under the plea agreement, the sentences will run one after the other. And, because a weapon was used in the crimes, Hyde will have to serve five years on each charge — 15 years total — before being eligible for parole.

Council Bluffs police officers went to a home on Apache St. shortly before 11:30 the night of March 8th, after they received reports about a disturbance and a man down. When officers arrived at the house, Chapin was found dead in the kitchen. He had suffered two gunshot wounds, one to the head and one in the foot. Investigators said that before the shooting, Chapin was at the home with Hyde’s female roommate. At some point, Hyde and Chapin got into a verbal confrontation before Chapin was shot. Hyde was at the residence when officers arrived.