Sen. Augare may plead guilty in case

HELENA — State Sen. Shannon Augare will plead guilty to charges of drunken driving, reckless driving and obstruction of a peace officer if a magistrate judge rejects a request to dismiss the federal charges, his attorney said Tuesday in a court filing.

A change of plea would allow Augare, a Blackfeet tribal council member, to avoid defending himself in U.S. District Court against the same charges he pleaded guilty to in tribal court last month in connection with a May 26 traffic stop.

His trial had been scheduled to begin Thursday, but U.S. Magistrate Judge Keith Strong delayed that trial.

Augare is accused of fleeing a Glacier County deputy who pulled him over on the Blackfeet reservation in May. The county turned the case over to the tribe, and the tribe’s chief prosecutor in turn gave it to the U.S. attorney’s office.

Augare’s attorney Joe McKay argued that the federal government no longer has jurisdiction to prosecute his client after he pleaded guilty and was sentenced in tribal court.