Troy woman facing more than 50 years in prison

Brandy Kay Fellows, 34, of Troy, is facing a sentence of up to 51 years in prison based upon charges presented in Montana’s 19th Judicial District Court Monday morning.

Fellows was arraigned on one felony count of attempted burglary, one felony count of burglary, two misdemeanor counts of theft (third or subsequent offense), and a felony count of solicitation to tamper with physical evidence.

According to the affidavit of probable cause filed by Lincoln County Sheriff’s Deputy Steve Short, Fellows was apprehended near her residence on Curly Creek Road in Troy following reports of trespass and thefts from two residences in the area.

Short reported he was dispatched to an address on Lime Creek Lane to take a complain for trespassing. Upon arrival, the property owner told Short his wife had noticed a woman looking in the window of his home office. When the man went outside to check, he noticed the woman looking in his bedroom window. The woman, later identified as Fellows, told the property owner her name was Lynn and she was looking for a dog.

While taking the report, Short was dispatched to a different residence on nearby Smith Road for a burglary in progress. The property owner reported his girlfriend had awoken to discover the door to their guest house open. When she went outside to investigate, she noticed a woman carrying items from the house. The witness provided Deputy Short with a license plate number for the suspect’s vehicle.

Short tracked the vehicle to the address of the registered owner, who reported having sold the vehicle to Fellows and her husband about one year ago, but the couple were still making payments on the vehicle. Short, along with other responding units, proceeded to Fellows’ last known address on Curly Creek Road in Troy, but did not locate the vehicle on site at that time.

Short reported the suspect drove up to the residence about five minutes after law enforcement arrived and was taken into custody without incident. Short said several items matching the description of items reported missing by the two victims were plainly visible in the vehicle, including a phone and rifle. Fellows was wearing clothing matching the description given by the victims.

In the charging information, Deputy Lincoln County Attorney Jeffrey Zwang added a charge of solicitation to tamper with physical evidence for allegedly commanding or encouraging her husband to steal her vehicle from Lincoln County impound before law enforcement could search the vehicle and find evidence of the thefts and burglaries.

Fellows pleaded not guilty to all counts before District Judge James Wheelis.

Defense attorney William Managhan asked the court to reduce Fellows’ bond amount from $50,000 to a release on her own recognizance, arguing his client has lived in Lincoln County for three years and does not pose a flight risk. He also said her crimes were not violent, so she poses no risk to the public and that her extensive criminal history demonstrates her understanding of the importance of appearing for court dates.

Zwang opposed the motion, arguing that not only were Fellows’ ties to the community not significant enough to overcome a risk of flight, but that her criminal record of 38 arrests, mostly for property-related offenses, demonstrates her lack of willingness to obey the law.

Wheelis declined to reduce the bond amount and scheduled an omnibus hearing for June 6, 2016.