Washburn County charged Colton Christopherson with first-degree intentional homicide in his father's death.

A charge and a quoted admission in a complaint are the start of a case. They are not a conviction. Allan Christopherson coached Wayzata boys golf to four state titles. His son faces the most serious intentional-homicide count Wisconsin files. Bail at $5 million and a competency order mean the court is still deciding whether he can stand trial, not what a jury has found.

Colton Douglas Christopherson, 25, of St. Michael, Minn., was charged in Washburn County Circuit Court with first-degree intentional homicide in the death of his father, Allan G. Christopherson, 56, FOX 9, the Star Tribune, WQOW, the Spooner Advocate, and Northwest NOW reported. The Star Tribune placed the killing at the family's property along McKenzie Lake about 10 miles northwest of Spooner, in Casey Township. The Spooner Advocate spelled the victim's first name Allen. FOX 9 and the Star Tribune used Allan. The charge is a charge. It is not a verdict.

Washburn County sheriff's deputies were called for a welfare check on Sept. 26, the outlets reported, citing the criminal complaint. FOX 9 reported a hunting partner could not reach Allan Christopherson after cutting a hunt short, went back to the hunting property, ran into Colton, and later told authorities Colton was "acting strange" and said, "Red, red, dead." The Star Tribune reported the caller also believed Colton and his father had been having issues and that Colton might be using drugs. When deputies arrived at the cabin, FOX 9 and the Star Tribune reported, Colton came outside. Asked if his father was around, he first said yes, then put his head down and told the deputy Allan was dead and that he "killed him," the complaint states. He was arrested.

Inside, deputies found Allan Christopherson in the basement laundry room under a green tarp, stabbed to death, FOX 9 reported. The Star Tribune reported a deputy saw a knife next to the garage door and another in the basement. In interviews after the arrest, the complaint states, Colton admitted stabbing his father twice in the neck, said he did not call for help or give care, and said he loaded the body into an SUV and drove it to hunting land intending to bury it. He brought the body back to the cabin when he found someone already at the hunting land, the complaint states. Asked why, FOX 9 reported the complaint says he described paranoid thoughts that his father had hired someone to kill him, that certain car colors and license plates had meanings, and that when he asked his father whether that was true, Allan said yes and Colton killed him "as it was better that he did it than someone else." Those are statements attributed to Colton in a charging document. They have not been tested at trial.

Allan Christopherson joined the Wayzata school district in 1998 and taught math at the high school, his obituary and the Star Tribune reported. He coached boys golf from 2009 to 2019 and won state titles in 2010, 2011, 2015, and 2017. This past spring he was a developmental coach for the girls team. The Wayzata golf program posted that the family had lost "one of the greatest coaches in the history of the program." His wife, Tina Christopherson, has been with the district for nearly three decades in technology integration, a district spokeswoman told the Star Tribune. The children are not the focus of this account.

Colton Christopherson remains in Washburn County Jail on $5 million bail. The Spooner Advocate reported Judge Angeline Winton-Roe set that bond at a Sept. 29 bail hearing and that he had an initial appearance on Monday, Oct. 12. An order for a competency examination is in the court record, FOX 9 reported. The Star Tribune reported a Dec. 7 hearing to assess mental competency. FOX 9 reported a competency hearing set for December without naming the day. December 7 and a December hearing without a date are not the same level of precision. A competency order asks whether he can assist in his defense. It is not a finding on the homicide count. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.