Lake County District Court news for Jan. 19, 2011
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Judge C. B. McNeil dealt with the following cases Wednesday, Jan. 12:
Tillian Jay Gonzales, 27, Wapato, Wash., pleaded not guilty to money laundering, a felony. Gonzales remains at liberty and an omnibus hearing is set for Wednesday, March 9 at 9 a.m. with a trial set for May 16 at 9 a.m.
According to court records, charges stem from a July 4 incident where Gonzales was allegedly selling pirated DVDs at the Arlee Pow Wow. A tribal police officer, not in uniform, approached Gonzales and asked him what kind of movies he had for sale, so Gonzales showed him a list of movies that included DVDs not currently released for sale.
When asked why Gonzales did not have a booth like the other vendors, he said a tribal officer previously told him to stop selling the DVDs, but Gonzales had just moved to a different location and continued his sales. The officer purchased a copy of “Bounty Hunter” for $10.
Officers later stopped Gonzales as he was leaving the powwow grounds. After Gonzales opened his backpack to show them the movies, officers arrested him and seized the DVDs and $380 in proceeds that were in Gonzales’ backpack. After obtaining permission to search Gonzales’ vehicle, officers found 130 more copied DVDs, $1,100 in cash, a DVD duplicator, 50 blank DVDs, 100 blank DVD sleeves, and poster of movie titles and a laptop computer. The officer checked ten random DVDs and all but one were functioning pirated copies of commercial movies.
Grady Harold Sullivan, Jr., 34, Polson, was sentenced to Department of Corrections for 10 years with eight suspended and be considered for placement in Connections Corrections after violating terms of probation set with a six-year deferred sentence for felony forgery in 2006. In August 2010, Sullivan was arrested for suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol and in December 2010 he tested positive for methamphetamine, benzodiazepine and oxycodone.
• James D. Adams, 52, Arlee, admitted to committing the offense of assault with a weapon, a felony and entered an Alford plead. He also admitted committing the offense of driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, fourth or subsequent offense, a felony. The court accepted the plead agreement and found Adams guilty.
According to court records, the DUI charge stems from a March 1, 2010 incident when a Montana Highway Patrol trooper responded to reports of a reckless motorcycle driver south of Ronan, who then crashed north of Ronan.
When the trooper arrived on scene, he noted that scrape marks leading to the motorcycle suggested that it had slid into its present position while traveling northbound on US Highway 93.
A Ronan officer reported that he'd activated his top lights in order to initiate a traffic stop and then observed the driver, identified as Adams, abruptly accelerate before steering to the right and then crashing.
The trooper also noted Adams was abrasive and argumentative with medical personnel, and at the hospital the trooper noted that his breath smelled of an alcoholic beverage, his eyes were bloodshot, his speech was slurred, and he seemed confused. When asked if he'd been drinking, Adams said, "not much," and then added, "I suppose I'm eligible for driving under the influence."
He later admitted to buying a liter of whiskey earlier in the day and having six shots before driving the motorcycle.
The assault with a weapon charge stems from an April 4 incident when Adams allegedly threatened numerous people at a Lake County residence.
Elizabeth Salway, 23, Browning, admitted to the offense of forgery, a felony. The court accepted her plead agreement and found her guilty. Sentencing is set for Wednesday, Feb. 16 at 9 a.m.
According to court documents, charges stem from a May 2007 incident where Salway wrote several checks on another person’s account.
Judge Deborah Kim Christopher dealt with the following cases Thursday, Jan. 13:
Alex Jungwirth, 26, Polson, admitted to committing the offenses of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, a felony; and habitual traffic offender operating a motor vehicle, a misdemeanor. The court accepted the plea agreement and found Jungwirth guilty.
Sentencing is set for Thursday, Feb. 17 at 9 a.m.
According to court records, charges stem from an October 19 incident where a woman was rear-ended by another vehicle that left the scene. She identified the truck to Polson Police, who followed it and noticed steam coming from under the hood, and that it was leaking fluids.
The officers stopped Jungwirth, who was driving the vehicle, and noticed he smelled of alcohol and that his speech was slow and blurred and his eyes appeared bloodshot. Jungwirth denied hitting anything, but when officers noted damage to his vehicle, Jungwirth said he hit a tree. He could not produce a driver’s license. A plastic bag containing a green leafy substance that resembled marijuana was found on his body.
A preliminary blood test revealed his BAC was .221. He was arrested and became combative with officers upon arrival to the sheriff’s office, and he refused to submit to an Intoxilyzer test.
Jungwirth’s driving record showed three prior convictions for DUI, and that he was declared a habitual traffic offender on Nov. 20, 2008, with that status continuing until Nov. 19, 2011.
Nathen Russell, 20, Pablo, admitted to committing the offense of criminal possession of dangerous drugs, a felony. The court accepted the plea agreement and found him Russell guilty. Sentencing is set for Thursday, Feb. 17 at 9 a.m.
According to court records, charges stem from an August 17 incident where a Montana Highway Patrol officer observed what appeared to be a drug transaction at Pier 93 gas station in Polson. After asking permission to search the vehicle, the trooper found several individually packaged bags of marijuana labeled by variety and price, plus several hydrocodone tablets. Russell admitted the marijuana was his, that it was intended for sale, and the tablets were also his and he did not have a prescription for them.
Dacia Tonasket (aka Dacia Hewankorn), 32, Elmo, was sentenced to 20 days in Lake County Jail with credit for time served for an amended sentence of criminal endangerment, a felony. A three-year sentence was deferred.
According to court records, charges stem from an Oct. 17 incident in Elmo where several people reported Tonasket was trying to run over a man with her vehicle. When officers arrived they noted the male victim, who said he was Tonasket’s fiancée, had cuts on his face and knee and his hands were injured. The victim said Tonasket had chased him with her Honda and hit him from behind.
Robert Templer, 41, Ronan, was sentenced to the Department of Corrections for 13 months for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs; and five years, all suspended, for an additional offense of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs with all suspended on the condition that Templer successfully completes the residential alcohol treatment program. Both offenses are felonies.
According to court records, the charges stem from two incidents. On Jan. 1, 2010 a Flathead Tribal Police Officer came across a pickup parked along the side of the road at the intersection of U.S. Highway 93 and Post Creek Road. The pickup was running and parked in such a way that interfered with traffic.
A male, identified as Templer was inside, asleep. The officer had to knock several times before he awoke. While speaking with Templer, the officer noticed a strong odor of alcohol coming from within the vehicle and he admitted to drinking. During the one-legged-stand sobriety test, he lost his balance and put his foot down several times. His breath test resulted in a BAC of .167%
A Sheriff’s Deputy arrested Templer and during booking at the jail, he provided a breath sample which registered a BAC of .152% A records check showed that Templer’s license to drive had been suspended and that he has three prior DUI convictions.
According to court records, an additional incident occurred in Polson on March 23, 2010, when Templer was pulled over by an officer that noted his truck was missing the front license plate. The officer noted a strong smell of alcohol. Although Templer refused all testing, he admitted he was driving under the influence of alcohol.
Jonas Lee Buckman, 28, Polson, was sentenced to the Department of Corrections for 10 years with five suspended for negligent vehicular assault, a felony. For the offense of accidents involving death or personal injury, a felony, Buckman was sentenced to the Department of Corrections for five years with all suspended.
According to court records, charges stem from a November 25, 2009 incident where Buckman allegedly was driving his Dodge truck after drinking whiskey. He hit a 16-year old girl who was riding her bicycle in the Turtle Lake area of Polson, and then fled the scene. A witness led officers to Buckman’s home, where they found the truck parked with damage and blood on the driver’s side. Buckman admitted he had been drinking whiskey. The victim sustained cuts and broken bones in the lower half of her body that kept her hospitalized in Missoula for more than a month.
Howard Kallowat, 55, Elmo, was sentenced to the Department of Corrections for one year, all suspended, for criminal possession of dangerous drugs, a felony. Kallowat was also sentenced to the Department of Corrections for three years for criminal endangerment, a felony, and driving under the influence of alcohol, a felony. The one year suspended sentence will run consecutive to his three-year sentence, and all previous conditions of probation are re-imposed.
According to court records, current charges stem from a Sept. 24, 2010 incident where Kallowat was driving a vehicle that was stopped by a Polson police officer. The officer observed beer and a rifle in the truck. Kallowat is on probation and prohibited from possessing alcohol or firearms, so he was arrested for violating probation. While in detention, officers found hydrocodone and methadone in Kallowat’s possession. Kallowat did not have a prescription for the scheduled drugs.
George Bennett Evans, 43, Polson, pleaded not guilty to felony charges of aggravated assault and criminal endangerment; partner family member assault, a misdemeanor; two felony counts of partner family member assault; and criminal mischief, a misdemeanor.
Evans is being held on $100,000 bond.
An omnibus hearing is set for Thursday, March 17 at 9 a.m. and a jury trial is set for Monday, April 11 at 9 a.m.
According to court documents, charges stem from a Dec. 26, 2010 incident where a deputy sheriff responded to a domestic assault call. Upon arrival, he found a glass door that was shattered and many broken items around the home. The woman stated said had found the broken items when she came home, and after arguing with her husband, he broke more items, pulled her hair, and then left. Three hours later she called to say Evans had returned to the home and thrown a brick through her car window.
Then on Jan. 3, a neighbor called 911 after the woman told him Evans had assaulted her. Officers responded to the neighbor’s residence where they found the woman with a bloody face and a cut by her eye. She told the officers Evans had strangled her, pushed her down the stairs and kicked her with his work boots.
