Former Libby City Councilor accused of fraud

A former Libby City Council member who resigned in 2018 after her criminal history was exposed is now accused of felony theft.

Angel Lee Ford, 53, of Libby, who previously pleaded not guilty, appeared in Lincoln County District Court on Aug. 15 for a hearing to determine if she would go to trial. Her public defender, Keenan Gallagher, said she would and expected a trial would last two days. Gallagher also said he was going to file a request for a change of venue.

Ford is accused of writing a bad check in November 2021 to a local company for nearly $900.

According to a probable cause document filed by Lincoln County Sheriff’s Deputy David Hall, he received a check on March 31 from the county Attorney’s office that was given to Pival Electric, allegedly by Ford. Hall reported that Ford’s phone number written on the top of the check matched a phone number she used to call in a complaint to the Sheriff’s Office in March 2021.

Hall also showed Ford’s Montana driver’s license photo to Jim O’Neil, the owner of the business, and he said she was the person who wrote the check.

According to a 2018 story in The Western News, Ford resigned from council due to “mounting political pressure” from Libby residents and media concerning past legal issues.

Prior to her resignation, The Western News reported two stories: one about how Ford’s explanation of a 2011 identity theft conviction differed from official reports, and another about how Ford was fined in 2005 for mailing a campaign postcard under her opponent’s name while campaigning for City Council in Hoquiam, Washington.

Ford was released on her own recognizance.

The maximum sentence for a conviction of felony theft is three years in the Montana State Prison.