David Bova, 30, of AuSable Forks is seen the day he was arrested in March and charged with second-degree murder for the shooting death of Magen Goyette. (Photo provided — New York State Police)

PLATTSBURGH — David Bova’s murder case has been transferred to Clinton County Court.

The AuSable Forks man accused of killing Magen Goyette last Wednesday morning had been scheduled for a preliminary felony hearing before Black Brook town Justice Gary Frenia at 2 p.m. today. But Bova’s attorney, James E. Tyner of Latham, waived that step in the process, according to a press release from the Clinton County District Attorney’s Office.

Tyner also consented to the transfer of Bova’s second-degree murder charge “for further action of the Clinton County Grand Jury,” the release said.

He pleaded not guilty before Frenia on Wednesday night.

Initially, Plattsburgh attorney Patrick McFarlin had represented Bova.

His new counsel, District Attorney Andrew Wylie and Frenia discussed waiving the hearing and moving the matter to grand jury via conference call Monday.

Bova remained in Clinton County Jail with no bail.

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Gunshot to head

Goyette died due to a gunshot wound to the head that caused severe skull fractures and brain injuries, her autopsy showed.

Bova, 30, had crashed his father’s Jeep near Fred’s Auto Repair on Silver Lake Road before getting out of the vehicle and grabbing his 9mm Hi-Point rifle from the backseat, he said in a statement to State Police acquired Friday by the Adirondack Daily Enterprise.

He said in that document that he had started to walk back home when he saw a black Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck coming down the road toward him. It was driven by Michelle Goyette, Magen’s mom, with Magen in the passenger seat.

Later in his statement, Bova admitted to firing rounds at the vehicle but claimed not to know if he had harmed anyone, saying, “I’m not sure if I hit the truck or anyone in it.”

This was contradicted by Fred Drake, one of several witnesses that morning, who told the Enterprise that Bova walked up to within 3 or 4 feet of the passenger side of the black Chevrolet Silverado before firing the gun.

“He shot right through the window at Magen, who was in the passenger seat, and hit her in the head,” said Drake’s sister-in-law Diane Parrow-Drake, who lives on Silver Lake Road.

Bova said he left on foot.

“I kept walking, and the gun was empty of ammunition.”

Then a man pulled up and offered him a ride to his home on nearby Separator Road. He didn’t say who the driver was.

Once there, he smoked a cigarette and waited for the troopers, he said.

He was apprehended at around 9:40 a.m.

Bova and Goyette had been in a relationship for about six months, said the shooting incident came after a night of arguments and Bova’s belief Goyette had stolen both cash and his cellphone, according to the statement.

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School lockdowns

AuSable Forks Elementary School, located just a mile-and-a-half from where the shooting took place, was locked down by AuSable Valley Central School Superintendent Paul Savage after he was alerted to the gunfire.

He also locked down the AuSable Valley Middle/High School in Clintonville and Keeseville Elementary as a precaution.