Smith sentenced for possession, endangerment
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A Ronan man was sentenced at District Court in Polson on Dec. 5 to a total of six years with the Montana State Department of Corrections with all suspended but time served of 73 days in the Lake County Jail.
Jay Calvin Smith, 31, was sentenced to two years, all suspended, for felony theft; two years, all suspended, for felony criminal possession of dangerous drugs (methamphetamine); and two years, all suspended, for felony criminal endangerment. It was all part of a plea agreement that settled three separate cases and dismissed one drug possession charge.
Some of the charges stem from a high-speed pursuit on June 8 when Polson police attempted to make a traffic stop on a motorcycle for not displaying a rear license plate. The motorcycle, which turned out to be reported as stolen, sped southbound on Skyline Drive, passing other motorists in no-passing zones and speeding through stop signs at Caffrey Road and North Reservoir Road. The chase continued south to Glover Road, crossed U. S. Highway 93 without stopping and proceeded down Mud Lake Trail.
The pursuit ended when the motorcyclist pulled into a privately owned planted field, off Rolling Road, and the property owner closed the gate.
The suspect, later identified as Smith, reportedly drove around in the field for “about an hour” before a Lake County Sheriff’s Office deputy placed Smith in custody. The field endured over $1,500 in damages. Smith was in possession of a Crown Royal bag that containing .97 grams of methamphetamine.
Smith was already facing two other cases. One case involved methamphetamine possession. The other involved the theft of a 1999 Dodge pick up and an attached snowplow from a church parking lot that went missing on Aug. 24, 2018. District Judge Deborah “Kim” Christopher ordered Smith to pay a total of $12,154.13 to the victims of his crimes.
