BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) - A felony tampering charge against a Billings man accused of hiding evidence in the 2004 shooting death of a Wyoming man has been dismissed, more than a year after a judge declared a mistrial in the case.

District Judge Susan Watters dismissed the charge against Jesus Villarreal Jr. on April 21. Villarreal's attorney, Sandy Selvey, argued that his client's rights to a speedy trial and due process were violated because a new trial had not been scheduled.

Assistant Attorney General Barbara Harris, who prosecuted Villarreal, did not oppose the motion, noting in court records that the state did not plan to seek a second trial.

Villarreal was accused of hindering an investigation into the September 2004 shooting death of Justin Marchant, 30, of Cowley. Marchant's body was found on a rural road in Carbon County just north of the Wyoming border. Prosecutors said he was shot twice in a car driven by Villarreal.

Bianca Wilson, a Billings woman who was in the car during the shooting, was charged with murdering Marchant. But the case was dismissed for lack of evidence, and the pair were charged instead with evidence tampering for trying to hide and clean the car. Wilson was convicted and is serving a five-year prison term.

Villarreal went to trial in March 2007, but two hours into jury deliberations, Watters declared a mistrial. She determined that Villarreal's right to a fair trial had been violated, noting that two prosecution witnesses said they feared Villarreal. She also said prosecutors connected Villarreal to Marchant's killing and that evidence of the defendant's drug use should not have been allowed.

Marchant's family said in a statement Tuesday that they weren't surprised that the criminal case was dismissed, but they intend to keep track of Villarreal.

"There are no words we could print to describe how we feel about Jesse Villarreal," said Connie Marchant, the victim's mother.