By PAT MULVANEY
Monroe County Herald Editor
Monroe County Circuit Court Judge Richard Radcliffe set a $100,000 cash bond for a Tomah man accused of firing shots outside a Wilton bar last Saturday.
Curtis L Goulet, 51, is facing eight criminal counts, including attempted first-degree homicide after an incident at the Hitchin’ Post.
According to the criminal complaint, Goulet was intoxicated when arrived at the bar Saturday at around 11:45 p.m. and confronted the boyfriend of his soon-to-be ex-wife. Witnesses said the defendant started tapping the man, who he had worked with at Toro, on the shoulder before his estranged wife pushed him outside the front door and toward his truck.
Goulet then reportedly retrieved a handgun from his truck, which his estranged wife tried to wrestle from him. Goulet fired two shots, one of which hit a neighboring building, and the other struck the entryway to the bar, one foot from where his estranged wife’s boyfriend was standing, the complaint alleges.
Goulet’s estranged wife then got the handgun away from him and ran back into the bar before the defendant left in his truck, according to the complaint.
A state patrol officer spotted Goulet’s truck on Hwy. 71 heading north toward Tomah and attempted to pull it over. The truck continued on to Tomah at the posted speed and eventually ran over a spike strip.
Goulet drove the truck to his residence where police took him into custody without further incident. Police said the suspect’s speech was slurred and he smelled of alcohol.
According to the complaint, Goulet told investigators he only meant to shoot the gun in the air and admitted he fired twice.
Besides attempted homicide, Goulet faces three counts of first degree recklessly endangering safety and single counts of fleeing an officer, possession of a firearm while intoxicated, disorderly conduct and operating without a license.
He faces 60 years in prison for the attempted homicide charge and 12 1/2 years each for the endangering safety charges.
In addition, police charged Goulet with third-offense drunk driving. His next court appearance is scheduled for May 3.
