Juneau man indicted after allegedly shooting second man in face

The Juneau man arrested last week on suspicion of shooting another man in the face was indicted Friday.

A grand jury found that Kenneth E. Nalan, 35, recklessly caused serious physical injury to John Nicholas Duran with a firearm, according to the indictment. Nalan faces one count of first-degree assault, a class ‘A’ felony that can carry up to 20 years in prison.

The case has been assigned to Juneau Superior Court Judge Louis Menendez. Nalan is scheduled to be arraigned in Superior Court Jan. 3, and his earlier bail hearing scheduled for that same day has been vacated.

Nalan is being held at Lemon Creek Correctional Center on $20,000 bail. His attorney is Eric Hedland, court records show.

Juneau Police Department said in a release last week that a man identified as John Nicholas Duran, 33, was shot in the face with a .357-caliber gun at a home in the Mendenhall Valley last Tuesday evening. They arrested Nalan in connection with the shooting the following day.

The victim, originally listed in critical condition, was medevaced to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, but his condition has improved to stable since then, hospital officials said.

He underwent facial reconstruction surgery Thursday, and hospital officials said on Friday evening that Duran was no longer a patient at Harborview.

The Duran family declined to comment when reached by phone on Thursday.

Nalan’s family says the incident was an accident. Attorney David Seid said in court Thursday that Nalan has “little to no” criminal record, and there’s a possibility for an argument to be made that the shooting was an accident or in self-defense.

• Contact reporter Emily Russo Miller at 523-2263 or at emily.miller@juneauempire.com.