(Photo by Anitra Wolf ) Scott Adair was the first defendant to take the witness stand at last Monday's bond reduction hearing at the Dickinson County Courthouse. Judge Patrick Carr released his decision this week to keep bond at the previously set amount of $750,000.

Judge Patrick Carr has decided to keep the bail set at $750,000 each for three men accused of a Milford murder earlier this spring.

John Allen Swan, 30, of Crossett, Ark.; Scott Thomas Adair, 29, of Crossett, Ark.; and Michael James Friedrichs, 29, of Forest City, appeared in court for a bail review hearing last Monday. Judge Carr's decision reached the Clerk of Court's office this week.

The three men are charged with first-degree murder, relating to a fight on April 4 in Milford that ended the life of Matthew Thomas Begtrup, 25, of Sioux Falls.

The judges decision to keep bail set at $750,000 included explanation that the men are a flight risk. They do not have family ties locally and they all have criminal history. Carr also pointed out that they did not know their victim prior to the alleged crime, which makes them a risk to the safety of others.

Each of the men entered a written plea of "not guilty" on April 28. A trial is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 23, at the Dickinson County Courthouse.