Prosecutors drop case against man in 2016 homicide

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MANITOWOC, Wis. (AP) — Prosecutors dropped a homicide charge against a Minnesota man suspected of fatally shooting of a 52-year-old Wisconsin man but say the investigation is ongoing and the case may be refiled.

The Manitowoc County District Attorney’s Office said in its motion to dismiss earlier this month “there is insufficient evidence” to convict 23-year-old Quinn Orn Smith for Kor Yang’s death. The filing, signed May 8 by District Attorney Jacalyn LaBre, says the decision was made in consultation with the victim’s family.

Authorities have alleged Smith and a second suspect went to Yang’s home in Manitowoc on February 2016 and shot him when he came to the door. Police are still looking for the second suspect.

Smith pleaded not guilty to a charge of first-degree intentional homicide. He was released from jail in September on a $500,000 recognizance bond and has been living in St. Paul, Minn.

In a statement released Friday, the Manitowoc Police Department said “everyone felt it would be in the best interest of justice to dismiss the charges at this time rather than hastily go forward with the case.”

“We want the public to know that the investigation of this case is still on-going at this time,” the statement said.

USA Today Network-Wisconsin reports investigators said in a criminal complaint against Smith that his DNA was found on the trigger of a gun believed to have been used in the homicide.

Smith’s attorney, Jeffery Oswald, tried to suppress statements Smith made to police after his arrest, arguing police didn’t tell Smith he didn’t have to talk with them. Oswald also said police failed to tell Smith that a charge had been filed against him when they began interrogating him.

Oswald’s motion to suppress did not succeed. Manitowoc Police Chief Nick Reimer maintains officers read Smith his Miranda Rights when they questioned him.