Erickson convicted of criminal possession
courtesy photo
Tyler Erickson
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POLSON — A Polson man with a criminal history dating back to when he was a juvenile and who has been deemed a persistent felony offender, has been sentenced to a total of 16 years in the Montana State Prison after being convicted on two counts of criminal possession of dangerous drugs.
According to court records, Tyler Frederick Erickson, 28, was on probation when a search of his home on May 24, 2021 turned up methamphetamine and heroin. After going through several public defenders at taxpayers expense, Erickson elected to represent himself. Minutes into the trial on those charges, Erickson changed his mind and opted for representation. Erickson was ultimately convicted of the drug charges, however, prior to the trial, he had an outburst in court that resulted in new charges. In that case, Erickson is alleged to have elbowed the screen to a flat screen television, breaking it. Erickson was escorted from the courtroom to a holding cell in the Lake County jail. While there, Erickson allegedly escaped a belly chain and used it to break two cameras in the cell. The damages caused by Erickson were in excess of $1,500 and brought on a new charge of felony criminal mischief. Erickson entered a plea of not guilty to that charge before Judge Manley on Jan. 6. Judge Manley set that case for trial May 9. Judge Manley has since been replaced by Judge Deborah “Kim” Christopher. Judge Christopher set the criminal mischief case for a status hearing Feb. 10.
Erickson is currently represented by Patrick G. Sandefur of Missoula.
