Polson man arrested for threatening murder
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POLSON — Former City of Polson building inspector Ronald Melvin was jailed May 15 for allegedly threatening to kill Polson city manager Todd Crossett and two other city employees.
According to court documents, Melvin left a threatening phone call with Ardrene Sarracino, administrative assistant for the City of Polson, on May 15. In the phone message, Melvin threatened to kill Crossett unless he resigned by the end of the week. He also threatened to kill Sarracino and city attorney James Raymond.
In the late afternoon, Melvin was arrested and charged with threats and other improper influence in official and political matters, a felony, under a $50,000 warrant. He was arraigned in Justice of the Peace Chuck Wall’s Court on May 16, and Wall set a bond of $5,000. Melvin bonded out on May 18 at about 2:30 p.m. He will be required to wear a GPS and a SCRAM bracelet, which monitors alcohol intake. He will not be allowed within 500 feet of Polson City Hall or the homes of Sarracino, Crossett or Raymond.
The investigation was transferred to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office according to Polson Police Chief Wade Nash since Melvin had been an employee of the City of Polson.
“It was my call,” Nash said. “I did not want any conflict of interest.”
Nash reviewed the content and the criminal elements in the message and decided there was enough to warrant a criminal investigation so he met with Lake County Sheriff Jay Doyle and Under Sheriff Dan Yonkin.
According to Yonkin, the case is still under investigation.
Melvin was recently fired after being arrested and pleading guilty to driving under the influence of alcohol on April 4. Melvin was driving a City of Polson pickup on his way to a city-sponsored training in Bozeman when he was arrested. His blood alcohol level was .265, more than three times the legal limit when the arrest was made.
Montana Highway Patrol Trooper Ken Klapan said dispatch received several phone calls around 2:50 p.m. on April 4 that the driver of a City of Polson pickup had lost control and gone into the ditch on Interstate 90 about 19 miles east of Butte.
When Klapan arrived on the scene, he noted the pickup had spun 180 degrees and gone into the ditch on the wrong side of the highway. The pickup had two popped tires, and another tire was low and leaking air.
Klapan said this was Melvin’s second DUI in five years and his third lifetime.
Melvin pleaded guilty in Jefferson County Justice Court. The terms of the plea agreement, signed May 1, stated Melvin was sentenced to 365 days of jail, with all suspended except seven days; he was fined $785 plus court costs; and he was required to attend an ACT chemical dependence program and have an ignition interlock device installed on his vehicle. He also received a probationary driver’s license.
