Plea hearing set in shooting spree

MARINETTE - An Upper Michigan man is expected to change his plea from not guilty to no contest in the shooting deaths of three teenagers last July.

A plea hearing in the Scott Johnson triple murder case is scheduled for Thursday afternoon.

Prosecutors say the 38-year-old Johnson shot and killed Tiffany Pohlson, Anthony Spigarelli and Bryan Mort near Niagara while a group of young people swam in the Menominee River. A fourth person was injured in the shooting.

According to David Mort, Bryan Mort's father, the families of the victims were notified on Monday about the change in plea. Mort tells FOX 11 that Johnson is expected to plead no contest to all charges against him.

"It means a lot less heartache, that's for sure," Mort said, pointing to the fact that the families will not have to relive the shootings at trial.

"We still haven't gotten over the shock of what happened to our son. We still miss him very much," Mort added.

Online court records indicate the hearing has been scheduled for 3:30 pm Thursday.

The case is being prosecuted by the Wisconsin Attorney General's Office. A spokesperson for the agency would only confirm a hearing has been scheduled but would not offer any details about what will happen at it.

Johnson's defense attorneys have not returned FOX 11's calls for comment. The trial was scheduled to start March 16.

If convicted, Johnson is facing three mandatory life prison sentences and an additional 400 years behind bars.