Morgan murder case moved to Nov. 17

During a court appearance in Boulder City Justice Court Tuesday, the man accused in the 2021 shooting death of Scott Dingman saw his next court date postponed for two weeks.

John Powell Morgan III was present in Boulder City Justice Court in front of Judge Gregory Mills, who appeared via a video teleconference call. Judge Christopher Tilman recused himself from the case being that he had previously represented Morgan when Tilman was still in private practice.

During Tuesday’s arraignment, a status check was requested and granted by Mills and will be held on Nov. 17 at 1 p.m. in Boulder City. According to lawdefiner.com, “A status hearing is a short, scheduled court appearance where a judge checks on the progress of a pending case. It is not a trial or a sentencing — it is a procedural check-in to keep the case moving forward on the court’s timeline.”

Morgan’s attorney, Louis Schneider, told the Review last week that his client plans to plead not guilty. This came after Morgan’s initial court appearance Oct. 25 in Boulder City.

It’s been nearly two weeks since Boulder City police arrested Morgan at a car dealership in Henderson after an arrest warrant was issued for him for one count of open murder with the use of a deadly weapon. The charge is directly related to the incident from May 31, 2021, when Dingman was allegedly shot by his friend in the roadway of Fairway Drive in Boulder City. The two were both armed and had been drinking that night.

While Morgan admitted to shooting Dingman, Boulder City police originally determined that he did so in self-defense, and no charges were filed by the district attorney.

“Based on new information received in 2025, the case received another review by Boulder City Police investigators,” the city said in a statement shortly after the recent arrest. “In April 2025, Boulder City investigators executed a search warrant on Morgan’s residence, in which investigators recovered new evidence that supported additional investigation.”

It goes on to state that investigators continued their efforts over the next year, identifying pertinent information, which ultimately led to development of probable cause for the arrest of Morgan.

Morgan remains in custody after having his original $1 million bail revoked. That revocation is expected to be addressed on Nov. 17.