CHIPPEWA FALLS — A Chippewa Falls man convicted of a double homicide in 1979 is once again seeking his release from prison.
Charles C. Coogan, 77, shot and killed Chippewa County supervisor Eugene Donaldson and bartender John Murphy at the Four Corners Tavern on April 20, 1979.
On Nov. 2, 1979, Coogan was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of armed robbery. He was given two consecutive life sentences, plus 10 years on the armed robbery conviction.
Coogan is scheduled for a parole interview in September, court records show. He is eligible for parole on Nov. 15.
The Department of Corrections Parole Commission sent a letter to Chippewa County about the upcoming hearing.
Judge Steve Gibbs responded to the letter, writing, “The Chippewa Falls community strongly opposes any parole of this individual. The community is still affected by his actions.”
Coogan is currently incarcerated at Oakhill Correctional Institution, DOC records show.
The family of Eugene Donaldson Sr. wrote a letter last year to the court, asking that parole be blocked.
“We just want to express our feelings on the upcoming parole interview of (Charles Coogan.) Well, our feelings haven’t changed. We feel he should not be released after the crime that he had committed,” the letter reads. “He took two lives! And it affected our families very much. And after hearing all the other parole hearings about Coogan his chances of reforming sound very slim. Coogan’s stories are never the same. And that is scary to think he would be let out in the public. He has no remorse for the crime that he had committed. He chose to pull the trigger and it took two innocent lives.
“There is no forgiveness of that crime. He is where he belongs so no one else gets hurt.”
In a previous parole attempt in 2019, a release plan called for Coogan to live with his brother and his brother’s wife in Green County, at a home near Brooklyn.
Coogan has been denied release in the past. Now-retired Judge Roderick Cameron wrote in 2011 that if Coogan were released, he should not be allowed to live in Chippewa County.
According to records, Coogan entered the tavern, pointed a gun at Murphy, the bartender, and demanded money. He shot Murphy in the chest, took money from the cash register, and shot Donaldson.
Coogan then drove from the Four Corners Tavern to the Lounge Bar where he was observed buying drinks. When he was arrested, Coogan had $273 in cash on him, and a bank slip belonging to one of the victims. His blood-alcohol level was 0.21.
Coogan, who served in Vietnam, claimed during the trial he remembered little to nothing of the shooting. A psychiatrist testified that Coogan had a mental disorder that was exacerbated by consuming alcohol. The jury found him sane while committing the crimes.
In 1986, Coogan filed a motion for a new trial, claiming he was denied effective counsel. However, the state trial court denied his motion, and the court of appeals and state Supreme Court both upheld that ruling. He filed a claim in federal court in 1990, arguing his sixth amendment right was violated, saying his attorney failed to present a witness in support of his insanity plea, according to the written decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals. He wanted a new trial “in support of his claim that he committed his crimes during a flashback to his Vietnam combat experiences.” However, the federal court also determined his constitutional rights had not been violated, and rejected all his claims.
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