Parole board denies North Fork murderer's plea

The Montana Board of Pardons and Parole turned down a parole plea by the Oklahoma man who tortured and then murdered a North Fork man in 1979.

The three-member board denied J.R. Fletcher’s plea on Dec. 5, saying his early release would not be in the best interests of society.

Fletcher, who is serving a 100-year sentence for the murder of 72-year-old Roy Cooper, will not be eligible for parole again until November 2019. He was convicted of deliberate homicide for torturing and murdering Cooper at his Polebridge-area home 35 years ago.

The board told Fletcher that it believes he is a detriment to society and has not taken responsibility for his crime. The board cited his guilty plea to a “heinous murder of an elderly victim while a fugitive from justice and numerous prior felony convictions.” The board also cited a “monumental amount” of letters and e-mails opposing Fletcher’s early release.

Flathead Count Attorney Ed Corrigan traveled to the Montana State Prison in Deer Lodge to testify against Fletcher’s release. Corrigan also testified against Fletcher’s release in 2009.

In a unanimous decision in 2009, the three-member board cited the severe nature of his crime, his criminal history and the detriment to society and Fletcher himself in denying his parole request at that time.

In April 1979, Fletcher, his wife Teresa Jean Fletcher and a man named Ronald L. White were on the run from Oklahoma, where Fletcher had broken parole. While fleeing to Canada through the North Fork Valley, the three got stuck in Cooper’s muddy driveway in Polebridge. They’d been drinking and using drugs and woke up Cooper for assistance.

Cooper was helping them pull their truck out when the three decided to steal Cooper’s horses and ride to Canada. They forced Cooper to saddle the horses and then held him at gunpoint while they burglarized homes in Polebridge.

The three then tortured and robbed Cooper in his own home. Fletcher eventually stabbed Cooper, who died from knife wounds to his neck.

Eventually realizing that reaching Canada via the North Fork was a bad idea, the three traveled west. They were arrested in Idaho following a shoot-out with police officers. Authorities linked the three to Cooper’s murder after they were found holding items from the dead man’s home.

Fletcher threatened to kill Cooper’s family when he was convicted. His plea agreement allowed him to avoid the death penalty.

Teresa Fletcher was convicted of mitigated deliberate homicide and has since been paroled. White was convicted of aggravated kidnapping and also has been paroled.