Motion Hearing Held for Sheridan Man Charged with Involuntary Manslaughter

A motion hearing was held Tuesday in Fourth Judicial District Court for a Sheridan man charged with involuntary manslaughter. Sheridan Media’s Ron Richter has the details.

The hearing was held to address a number of motions filed by defense attorney Ryan Wright, whose client, Cody McCalla of Sheridan, is charged with involuntary manslaughter. McCalla was charged with the crime this past July for allegedly punching 48-year-old Patrick Mudd in the face and head, causing traumatic brain injury that resulted in Mudd’s death. McCalla is claiming self defense in the case. 

According to court documents, an officer with the Sheridan Police Department, on July 12, responded to the 1900 block of West 5th Street shortly after 6 pm for a fight in progress. When the officer arrived on scene, Mudd was lying on the ground in a puddle of blood and McCalla was close by with blood on his face and his hands. McCalla told the officer that he had been in a fight with Mudd and that he had hit him once. Two female eye witnesses told the officer that Mudd and McCalla were having an argument about a parking related issue and that they heard Mudd tell McCalla to leave him alone. The two witnesses said they then heard a “knuckles hitting” sound and saw Mudd fall to the ground.

The defense motions that were addressed at Tuesday’s hearing included establishing a deadline date of January 27 for motions to be filed; a request for the criminal history of the witnesses in the case and a request for unredacted disclosure of information that the defense is receiving from the State. District Court Judge Ben Kirven said he’d take the motions under advisement and issue a decision on the matter by the end of the week.

A five-day jury trial is scheduled to begin on March 3, 2025. A pretrial conference is set for January 30 at 9 am. The charge of involuntary manslaughter is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.