On the evening of Friday, September 18, 2026, in the quiet town of New Plymouth, Idaho, the life of 47-year-old Howard Schofield IV was tragically cut short. Emergency services were dispatched to a residence on Southwest Fourth Avenue near Adams Road around 7:30 p.m. following a 911 call reporting a shooting. Upon arrival, first responders from the Payette County Sheriff's Office, Payette and Fruitland police departments, and Payette County Paramedics found Schofield with gunshot wounds. Despite their immediate life-saving efforts, he succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.
At the scene of the shooting, authorities took 19-year-old Michael Dudley of Nampa into custody. Dudley was identified as Schofield's stepson. He was subsequently arrested and booked into the Payette County Jail on a charge of first-degree murder. The Payette County Sheriff's Office has assured the public that there is no ongoing threat and that they are not seeking any other suspects in connection with the incident. The investigation into the circumstances surrounding the fatal shooting remains ongoing, with assistance from the Idaho State Police Forensic Services crime lab.
Following his arrest, Michael Dudley made his initial court appearance where a judge set his bond at $1 million. In addition to the first-degree murder charge, Dudley is also facing a felony burglary charge. If convicted of murder, he could face a maximum sentence of life in prison or the death penalty under Idaho law. A status conference in the case was scheduled for late September 2026. The case, which involves the fatal shooting of Howard Schofield IV, allegedly by his stepson Michael Dudley, has now moved into the judicial process where the details of that tragic evening will be further examined.
