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Lake County District Court news for Jan. 14, 2010

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Judge C.B. McNeil dealt with the following cases on Wednesday, Jan. 6:

Roxanna Inez Andrew, 32, of Elmo, was sentenced to the DOC for ten years with six years suspended for felony negligent vehicular assault. For felony criminal endangerment, she was sentenced to the DOC for five years with all suspended. The sentencing will run consecutively.

The charges stem from a two-vehicle crash on Main Street in Polson on April 13, 2009. According to court records, Andrew was traveling south on Main Street and struck a parked Dodge pickup, which was unoccupied, at a high rate of speed. Andrew and three other occupants were transported to St. Joseph Hospital. According to witnesses in the court documentation, Andrew had been drinking since late afternoon of April 12 until bar closing time of April 14 and had asked someone for a ride to where her car was parked. The person refused because her car was full, then Andrew became upset and tried to start a fight. The other person saw Andrew get into her own car, and then began chasing them and ran into the parked pickup. The crime lab report indicated Andrew’s BAC was 0.17, as well as traces of THC were found in her blood.

Alexa Fenton, 19, of St. Ignatius received a deferred sentence for three years for felony assault on a peace officer. She was sentenced to 21 days in jail and fined $160.

According to court records, the charge stems from a June 24, 2009 incident when a Tribal Officer was called to group of people fighting in St. Ignatius. The reporting party told the officer that Fenton had come to this location and started fighting with the people there. When the officer approached Fenton and tried to take away a leashed pit bull she was holding on to, she kicked the officer in the leg and punched him in the face. After she was placed under arrest, she attempted to kick the officer again.

William Allen Rorvik, 28, of Ronan, pleaded guilty to felony driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs and misdemeanor driving while privilege to do so is suspended or revoked. He pleaded not guilty to operating a motor vehicle without proof of insurance compliance.

Sentencing is set for Thursday, Feb. 11 at 9 a.m. and an omnibus hearing for operating without proof of insurance, is set for Thursday, Jan. 14 at 9 a.m.

According to court records, the charges stem from a Dec. 21 incident when a report was made from a man that lived on Corrigan Road about something going on just north of his home. 

A Lake County Sheriff’s Deputy and a Ronan Police Officer went to investigate and the officer discovered a blue pickup on the east side of the roadway, stopped amidst a fence. Rorvik was behind the wheel of the wrecked truck and the keys were in the ignition.

Both the deputy and the officer could smell the odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from Rorvik. 

A Montana Highway Patrol Trooper arrived and tried several times to wake Rorvik. He had to physically assist him out of the patrol vehicle and escort him to perform sobriety testing. Rorvik was so unsteady on his feet, that the trooper had to hold him up. Court records indicated that Rorvik’s license was revoked.

Rorvik told the trooper that he was headed home. His speech was slurred to the point where he was difficult to understand and he was unable to give him his correct address or phone number. A breath sample produced a BAC of .266%. He could not provide proof of insurance at the time of the incident.

After booking at the jail, he stopped following the trooper’s finger during the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus test, and scored seven out of eight possible clues of impairment. On the one-legged stand, he scored three out of four possible clues of impairment.

Court records indicated that Rorvik had six prior convictions of DUI.

Joshua David Allred, 23, of Polson, pleaded guilty to felony criminal possession of dangerous drugs. Sentencing is set for Wednesday, Feb. 10 at 9 a.m.

According to court records, the charge stems from a July 31, 2009 incident when Allred’s brother contacted a Sheriff’s Deputy and stated that his brother wanted to turn himself in for carrying the drug Lortab and they were driving to the jail at that time.

When they arrived at the jail, Allred said he’d been taking the drug for six years and needed help. He admitted to taking Lortab earlier that day and that he did not have a prescription.

Allred was then booked at the jail, and eight white pills, appearing to be hydrocodone, were found in Allred’s pocket.

Marvin L. Camel, Jr., 30, of Ronan, pleaded not guilty to felonies aggravated assault and criminal endangerment.

An omnibus hearing is set for Wednesday, Jan. 27 at 9 a.m.

Camel remains in custody and the bond is set for $50,000.

According to court records, on Nov. 8, a Flathead Tribal Police Officer responded to St. Luke’s Hospital to interview a woman who had shown up in the emergency room, stating that she had been assaulted.

She was afraid to talk to the officer, but eventually said her boyfriend, Camel, had assaulted her. The officer had been on a disturbance call at the woman’s house earlier that day, but she refused to talk to the officer. 

She finally told the officer that Camel had dragged her down the stairs by her hair, that she had hit her tailbone and could not move her legs for several hours. She had recently had her lower back fused.

She also stated that she was thrown to the floor, punched in the face, and strangled.

Duane Dennis Matt, 49, of Dixon, pleaded not guilty to felony driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, fourth or subsequent offense. Matt remains in custody on parole violation.

An omnibus hearing is set for Wednesday, Feb. 3 at 9 a.m.

According to court records, the charge stems from a Dec. 17 incident when a Montana Highway Patrol Trooper observed expiring registration tabs dated of April 2006, on a vehicle on U.S. Hwy. 93 near mile marker 33. 

The trooper observed four individuals in the vehicle, and that furtive movements in the front and right-sided passengers occurred.

After stopping the vehicle, he noted that one of the passengers in the rear seat appeared to be very nervous. He also noticed an open half-full beer can on the floor between the passenger’s feet and an open 12-pack of beer between the rear passengers that appeared to have some cans missing from it.

The driver identified himself under a false name and he said he had no ID on him, and could not provide proof of registration and he told the officer that he bought the vehicle from his sister for $200. Court records indicated that the license plate was registered to a vehicle that did not match the description of the vehicle the trooper had pulled over.

The driver, later identified as Matt, when speaking to the trooper, had an odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his breath. His eyes were bloodshot and glassy, and his speech was slurred to the point of being hard to understand. 

The result of a breath test indicated a BAC significantly above .08%. He was placed under arrest as the false name he’d given the officer gave a history that he’d had seven prior DUI convictions.

Matt then identified himself to the trooper and said he was not supposed to be driving and that he was on parole. Court records indicated that Matt’s driver’s license was revoked and that he had seven previous DUI convictions. During booking at the jail, he gave a breath sample resulting in a BAC of .168%

Brian Roger Haynes, 41, of Big Arm, pleaded guilty to felony fraudulently obtaining dangerous drugs. He was found guilty and received a deferred sentence of three years and will serve 14 days in jail. He was also fined $80.

According to court records, on Sept. 24, a Polson Police Officer was contacted by a pharmacist from the Safeway Pharmacy, who stated that Haynes, identifying himself as Ron Hayes, had been trying to refill a prescription for Hydroc/APAP, a dangerous drug. The doctor contacted for approval by the pharmacy stated that Ron Hayes was deceased.

The officer told the pharmacist to fill the prescription and to call when it was picked up. Hayes was then stopped by the officer, and he admitted to falsely claiming to be his brother, Ron Hayes and to paying and picking up the prescription.

Joshua Robert Dempsey, 29, of Ronan had is sentence of felony forgery, a common scheme, revoked and was committed to the DOC for eight years with six years suspended.

Dempsey had his sentence revoked because he failed to report to his parole officer, used illegal drugs, consumed alcohol, was driving under the influence, and failed to follow through with attending mental health counseling.

According to court records, the forgery charge stems from incidents that occurred between Sept. 1, 1999 to Oct. 26, 1999 when Dempsey took a number of check books from his parents and wrote checks to various local businesses and signed them without permission. The total amount of the checks was more than $1,300.

 

Judge Deborah Kim Christopher dealt with the following cases on Thursday, Jan. 7:

Leroy Hayes, 44, of Polson, pleaded guilty to felony driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs and was committed to the DOC for 13 months for placement in an appropriate facility and sentenced to the DOC or Montana State Prison for five years, with all suspended.

According to court records, the charge stems from an incident on Aug. 4 when Hayes was stopped for erratic driving and failure to signal a turn. Signs of alcohol intoxication were observed and he performed poorly in sobriety testing. Breath test resulted in .211% BAC. Hayes was then put under arrest and taken to jail for further processing. A check of driving records indicated that driving privileges were suspended at the time Hayes was driving, and he had three prior convictions of DUI.

Edmund Ross Frank, 20, of Ronan, pleaded not guilty to accountability - assault with a weapon, accountability - aggravated assault, accountability - aggravated assault and accountability -robbery.

On omnibus hearing is set for Thursday, Feb. 4 at 9 a.m.

According to court records, the charges stem from a Nov. 7 incident when a resident of Gardner Apartments in Ronan called the Flathead Tribal Police about a break in to his neighbor's residence. He said they had tried to break into his apartment prior to breaking into his neighbor's. He also told advised that one or two of the people breaking in had a knife. The neighbor, the person who had his home broken into, called dispatch from a Town Pump phone and said his girlfriend was still at his home and he was concerned about her safety.

A Ronan Police Officer arrived on scene and he saw three males running up the stairs of the apartments. He followed them and instructed them to lay down on the ground. Two complied, but the third, refused.

Tribal Officers arrived on the scene and identified two companions, one identified as Frank, and placed them in the patrol vehicle. No weapons were found on Frank.

The officers observed damage in the apartment to include a door that was kicked in that appeared to have a long crack in the door jamb, and a card table that had a stab mark in it. The woman left in the apartment was interviewed and she stated that at one point, one of the men had tried to throw her to the ground.

The man in the apartment, who had fled to call 911, stated to the officers that he tried to convince the guys to leave, but one started to waive the kitchen knife around and took away his pocket knife and stabbed the table with it.

In an interview conducted by an officer with a neighbors, they stated that Frank and two other men tried to get the neighbors to let them in the next door apartment through the window. They repeatedly banged on the door.

Jan Allen Frampton, 48, of Washington, pleaded guilty to felony criminal endangerment. She was found guilty and sentencing is set for Thursday, Feb. 11 at 9 a.m.

The charges stem from a March 4, 2005 incident when a Patrol Officer approached a one-vehicle crash involving a pickup that had gone off the road and hit a power pole, which then landed on the pickup. The power pole was broken at the base and still live which produced a hazard to rescue personnel.

A witness stated to the officer that the pickup was going south on Highway 83, swerving and drove in the wrong lane and eventually stopped. The witness stated that she then spoke with Frampton and noticed that his speech was slurred and offered to drive him home.

He refused and drove away. She continued to follow him, but lost sight as he rounded a corner then saw a flash of light and found the truck off the road and under the power pole.

The truck had a strong odor of alcoholic beverages, and court records proved Frampton had three prior DUI convictions and that his license was revoked.

Allen Robert Ray, 63, of Polson, pleaded guilty to felony theft and sentencing is set for Thursday, Feb. 11 at 9 a.m.

According to the plea agreement, Ray will be sentenced to the DOC for five years with three years suspended, and will be fined $180.

According to court records, on Sept. 29, an individual called Ronan Police to report that he was following someone who was riding his stolen bike on the walking path west of Ronan.

Ray was stopped by a Ronan Police Officer. When questioned about the bike, Ray said he bought it from someone in Hot Springs for $50.

The individual claiming ownership of the bike arrived on the scene, and stated that he knew the bike was his, as it was a unique expensive model purchased recently from Ronan Power Products, worth $3,000. The serial number on the bike matched the records with Ronan Power Products.

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