The man accused of gunning down a mother and daughter west of Kalispell on Christmas Day pleaded innocent to two counts of deliberate homicide Thursday in Flathead County District Court.

Tyler Miller, 34, at times appeared to wink and smile during a hearing in front of a courtroom crowd that included family and friends of 35-year-old Jaimi Hurlbert and her 15-year-old daughter Allysa Burkett.

Dressed in blue jail garb and seated between two attorneys, Miller responded with brief acknowledgments as Judge David Ortley explained to him his rights and charges.

Six armed guards stood by in the courtroom and attendees were processed through a metal detector before entering the hearing.

 Flathead County Attorney Ed Corrigan asked Ortley to read to Miller the potential penalties for a conviction of deliberate homicide, “including the possibility of the death penalty.”

Prosecutors are undecided on whether to pursue capital punishment for the two charges, which each carry a maximum penalty of 100 years in prison or death.

Corrigan said he intends to charge Miller as a persistent felony offender based on his extensive criminal history, a designation that would result in additional years of incarceration for Miller if he’s convicted.

Miller, who legally changed his name from Cheetham in 2009, allegedly shot and killed Hurlbert, his former girlfriend, and Burkett with a .45 caliber handgun at his mother’s home west of Kalispell on the afternoon of Dec. 25, 2010.

He was arrested after law enforcement authorities tracked him to a vacant trailer on Ashley Hills Road. Family and friends of Hurlbert say she and Miller have a 17-month-old daughter together, and that Miller became aggressive and erratic after Hurlbert ended the relationship.

Miller allegedly confessed to planning and executing the murders during interviews with Flathead County Sheriff’s Office detectives, according to court documents.

Hurlbert’s father, Butch Hurlbert, sat among several family members who traveled from as far as Canada to attend the Thursday hearing.

He said he is strongly in favor of the death penalty for Miller, and that he’s relayed that opinion to prosecutors.

“The state is iffy on the death penalty because of the cost,” Butch Hurlbert said. “But if he goes to prison for 60 years or is (executed) in 20 years, what difference is the cost?”

Butch Hurlbert also reacted to Miller’s demeanor during his first two District Court appearances. On Dec. 27, Miller stared intently at Butch Hurlbert and mouthed several words before he was ordered held with no bail.

On Thursday, Butch Hurlbert took several opportunities to look in the courtroom gallery to acknowledge apparent supporters.

“I want him, for every day of his life he has left, to think about what he’s done and how it’s going to happen to him,” he said.

Outside the Flathead County Justice Center, two women stood along South Main Street holding signs with messages that included “murderers should be hanged” and “fight against domestic violence.”

D’Lon Lambright said the demonstration was aimed at providing a voice for Hurlbert, a friend of almost 20 years, and Burkett.

“I just am here to support her and her family,” she said crying. “I can’t go in the courtroom. I don’t have enough strength.”

Lambright and Terri Mansfield remained outside throughout the court proceeding.

“She doesn’t have a voice anymore,” Lambright said. “I have a voice, and I’ll use it.”

Miller’s next court appearance is an omnibus hearing scheduled for Jan. 19. A trial is tentatively slated to begin March 7.

Judge Stewart Stadler has been assigned to preside over the trial.

Miller is being held in the Flathead County Jail without bail, though his attorneys have reserved the right to request a bond be set.