Micheal David Anderson, 14, Holton, died March 19, 2010, in Denison. He was born May 18, 1995, in Fresno, Calif., the son of Paul Anderson and Diana Wallace. He was nine months old when his family moved to Denison, where he grew up, and he attended Colorado and Central elementary schools in Holton. He moved with his family to Holton in 2005. Mr. Anderson was currently a student at Holton Middle School, where he participated in wrestling and other activities. Survivors include his mother, Diana Creamer and husband Rick, Holton; his father, Paul Anderson, Denison; two sister, Dana Wallace and Paige Anderson, both of Holton; a brother, Paul Anderson II, Denison; a stepbrother, Arron Creamer, Prineville, Ore.; a stepsister, Mallory Creamer, Redmond, Ore.; grandparents, Bertha Anderson and Jim and Norma Hoagland, all of Holton, and David and Dovie Wallace, Rush Springs, Okla.; and many other aunts, uncles and relatives. He was preceded in death by his grandfather, Floyd Anderson. Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. March 27 at the Lakeview Faith Chapel south of Holton, with Pastor Steve Cappleman officiating. Interment will be in Ozawkie Cemetery. Visitation will be held from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. March 26 at the Lakeview Faith Chapel, where family will greet friends from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. A memorial fund for Mr. Anderson has been established with Farmers State Bank, 209 Montana Ave., Holton, KS 66436. Memorial contributions may also be made to the charity of the family’s choice, sent in care of Wherry Mortuary, 207 Nemaha St., Humboldt, NE 68376.
Involuntary manslaughter charge filed in shooting A Holton Middle School student has been charged with involuntary manslaughter in the fatal Friday night shooting of another HMS student. Whether 13-year-old Matt Skidmore will be tried as an adult or as a juvenile has yet to be decided, however, and Jackson County Attorney Shawna Miller said no decision has been made along those lines, although a detention hearing for Skidmore was set for March 24 in Jackson County District Court. Skidmore faces the involuntary manslaughter charge in the Friday shooting death of 14-year-old Micheal Anderson of Holton. Al Dunn, chief detective with the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department, said that Skidmore was arrested at around 3 p.m. Monday in connection with Friday’s incident, in which Anderson was shot and killed by a single gunshot at a location in Denison. Dunn said the two boys were friends, and family members have corroborated that statement, but details about events leading up to the shooting have not yet been released by the sheriff’s department. It was reported that at about 10:30 p.m. Friday, sheriff’s officers were dispatched to the Denison location after receiving word of the shooting via a 911 call. They arrived to find Anderson had been shot, and he was pronounced dead at the scene. Other details of the shooting have not been released by the sheriff’s department, Dunn said. Miller added that due to Skidmore’s age, many of the details of his case will remain confidential, and some records related to the case have been ordered sealed by court officials. Dunn said that due to Skidmore’s age, he could be either tried as a juvenile or adjudicated as an adult in criminal court. If the court decides on the latter, Dunn said, sentencing guidelines for involuntary manslaughter include a standard sentence of 31 to 34 months “and the courts would pretty much decide probation or jail on that.” If Skidmore is tried as a juvenile, he added, Skidmore could be held in a juvenile detention facility until he is 22 1/2 years old. “It’s at the discretion of the courts,” Dunn said. (Sanders)