Former NDSU linebacker got into argument with fellow Bison athletes before shooting at house, indictment says – InForum

FARGO – A former North Dakota State University linebacker got into a fight before firing a gun into a home, nearly hitting a person inside, court documents show.

Jaiden Traydeon Pickett, 19, of Milwaukee, appeared in Cass County District Court on Monday, Sept. 9, on charges of aggravated terroristic assault, reckless endangerment and theft of a firearm. Judge Tristan Van de Streek set his bail at $50,000.

Court documents provide few details about the events shortly before 1 a.m. Sunday that led to Pickett's arrest at a Fargo home. Fargo police were called to the 1200 block of 11th Street North because shots had been fired.

Witnesses told police that Logan Mathieu, an NDSU junior from Eagle River, Alaska, who hurdles for the Bison track and field team, got into a “physical altercation/argument” on the boulevard with Pickett and his football teammate William Frattalone, according to an incident report. Frattalone is a redshirt freshman from Wayzata, Minnesota. He is a cornerback but has not yet played for the Bison.

Pickett pulled a Beretta Px4 Storm 9mm pistol from his waistband and fired it into the house, the incident report states. The single bullet nearly struck Isaac Huntington, a senior from Hastings, Minnesota, who sprints for the NDSU men's track and field team, court documents state.

According to the incident report, a video shows Frattalone yelling and trying to fight with others before the shooting.

Another video shows Pickett pointing his gun at Mathieu and “even stabbing Logan with it at one point,” the incident report states.

The accident report said that the shooting could not be seen on the video. According to police, no one was injured.

According to court documents, the gun Pickett was carrying when police arrived had been stolen.

Pickett denied firing the gun, according to court documents. He told Van de Streek that he did not deserve to be charged, adding that anyone the judge spoke to would say that Pickett was a “good guy.”

“Please take this into consideration,” Pickett said before Van de Streek set bail.

Van de Streek concluded that Pickett was entitled to a public defender, but followed the prosecutor's recommendation to set bail at $50,000.

“These are serious allegations,” said the judge.

A redshirt freshman who did not play in a game last season, Pickett was on the field for the first time in his college career at linebacker during the second half of the Bisons' first home game Saturday at the Fargodome.

NDSU defeated the Tennessee State University Tigers 52-3. Pickett's arrest came just hours after the victory.

The forum reported Monday morning that NDSU kicked Pickett off its football team for violating the school's code of conduct for student-athletes.

“Being a student-athlete at NDSU is a privilege that comes with the expectation to positively represent the team and university while being a responsible member of our community,” Bison head coach Tim Polasek and athletic director Matt Larsen said in a statement.

Pickett was considered a highly valued recruit who also had offers from Illinois State, North Dakota, Northern Iowa and South Dakota State.

Pickett remains in custody at the Cass County Jail. If found guilty, he faces up to five years in prison for each count and a minimum of two years in prison because the charges involved the use of a weapon.

“The athletic department will review any new information, but at this time we cannot announce any further disciplinary action,” Ryan Perreault, Bison assistant athletic director, told The Forum.

Editor's note: An original version of this story contained incorrect information about the person Jaiden Pickett was arguing with. The story was corrected at 4:17 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 9.