MINOT, N.D. (KMOT) – There are new developments Thursday in the case of a husband and wife charged with stealing thousands of dollars from a Minot-area archery club.
Dallas and Nichole Rice face felony charges after prosecutors said they took a combined $183,000 from the group Souris Valley Bowmen and used the money for personal expenses over the course of three years.
Nichole Rice demands a new judge
In a court filing Thursday, Nichole Rice has requested a demand for a change of judge in the case and requested one from a different judicial district.
In the filing, her attorney asked that Judge Gary Lee be disqualified and the presiding judge for the South Central Judicial District assign a new one.
On Wednesday, we reported Judge Gary Lee was assigned to the case after Judge Steven Lautt recused himself. Lee and Lautt are two of the five judges in the North Central District, which comprises Ward, Mountrail and Burke Counties.
The South Central District covers nine different counties, including Burleigh and Morton.
Nichole’s request does not list a specific reason for wanting to have Lee removed from the case.
Last March, Nichole stood trial on a murder charge in the 2007 death of her then-roommate Anita Knutson.
The case was moved to Grand Forks, where a Grand Forks County jury acquitted her of the charge.
North Central District Judge Richard Hagar presided over Nichole’s murder case, from her initial appearance following her arrest in 2022, through her 2025 trial.
Lee did not have any public connection to the case, and Lautt was sworn in as a judge after the murder trial was over.
The courts have yet to file a ruling on the demand for a change of judge.
Judge denies Dallas Rice’s request to waive initial appearance
Judge Gary Lee denied a request from Dallas to waive appearing in-person for his initial court appearance and have his attorney enter a not guilty plea on his behalf. The order means that Dallas would have to appear in person.
Both Dallas and Nichole have initial court appearances scheduled for April 20 in Minot.
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