The Year in Review, Part 1

January 7

Kirkedahl pleads guilty to mitigated deliberate homicide

A Trego man accused of killing his adult son last year pleaded guilty Dec. 20 to a single count of mitigated deliberate homicide.

Prosecutors originally charged Scott Lee Kirkedahl, 58, with deliberate homicide after multiple emergency and law enforcement agencies arrived at his home in the early morning hours of April 5 following a report of a fatal shooting. Investigators found Kirkedahl’s son dead on the floor of the kitchen, his head surrounded by blood, court documents said.

An affidavit filed in Lincoln County District Court last year listed the victim’s paternal uncle as a witness to the events leading up to the shooting. The man told investigators he saw his brother and nephew argue repeatedly in the days prior to the younger man’s death.

At one point, the victim left his father with a black eye after punching him, the witness told investigators.

Zimmerman back as city council president

City councilors in Libby reaffirmed Brian Zimmerman as the panel’s president and reshuffled seats during their first meeting of the year on Monday.

Zimmerman, who was first elected to city council in 2015, was tapped by his colleagues for the position in late September. At the time, he was selected to succeed Peggy Williams following her appointment to the position of mayor.

Traditionally, the title of council president goes to the longest serving member of the panel.

January 11

The first baby born in Libby this year had a bit of competition.

Officials at Cabinet Peaks Medical Center reported three babies born in the hours before and after the clock struck midnight on New Year’s Eve. The second of those infants, Tony Johnson, was deemed the medical center’s first birth of 2022. He arrived about 3:26 p.m., Jan. 1, officials said.

Jan. 14

Rhodes arrested in attack on U.S. Capitol

Stewart Rhodes, the founder and leader of the far-right Oath Keepers militia group, has been arrested and charged with seditious conspiracy in the attack on the U.S. Capitol, authorities said Thursday.

Ten other people also were charged with seditious conspiracy in connection with the attack on Jan. 6, 2021, when authorities said members of the extremist group came to Washington intent on stopping the certification of President Joe Biden's victory.

These are the first charges of seditious conspiracy that the Justice Department has brought in connection with the attack led by supporters of former President Donald Trump.

Jan. 18

County intends to keep marijuana retailers on short leash

County commissioners indicated last week they will honor voters’ wishes for legalized recreational marijuana sales locally, but seek to keep the industry on a short leash.

“It’s been passed by the citizens of Montana and we are obligated to deal with that,” said County Commissioner Jerry Bennett (D-2).

Voters in Lincoln County joined 25 other counties in approving I-90, a ballot initiative legalizing recreational marijuana in Montana in 2020. Those counties that saw voters reject the measure remain dry — as opposed to “green” — for the time being, but can put the question back before voters in the future.

While recreational cannabis sales went into effect Jan. 1, retail opportunities were limited to existing medical marijuana dispensaries. Newcomers must wait 18 months before joining the industry.

Jan. 28

Seattle residents charged with helping Mexican nationals enter country

Two Seattle residents face charges in federal court after Border Patrol agents allegedly caught them helping six Mexican nationals cross the border in the West Kootenai area last week.

Leslie Patricia Rivera, 51, and Miguel Angel Medina, 61, both of Seattle, made their initial appearances in U.S. District Court on Jan. 21 on charges of conspiracy to transport illegal aliens and transportation of illegal aliens. Neither Rivera nor Medina has entered a plea.

The six Mexicans, listed in court documents as Arlaeth Gomez-Calvel, Nereida Cynthia Jose-Santiago, Imelda Berenice Luis-Lopez, Daniel Ricardez-De La Rosa, Ezequiel Valencia-Vasquez and Libertad Vasquez-Cruz, were detained as witnesses, court documents said.

Border Patrol agents learned of the attempted border crossing about 5 a.m., Jan. 19, according to a press release issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Montana.

February 8

Fire crews find body in burned home

Firefighters with the Libby Volunteer Fire Department discovered a body while sweeping through a Bald Eagle Road home during a Saturday evening blaze.

Chief Steve Lauer said volunteers responded to a report of an unoccupied home on fire from dispatchers about 3:48 p.m. A search of the home, performed upon the arrival of the department’s interior attack crew, turned up a deceased individual in the bedroom, Lauer said.

Lauer could not say what role, if any, the fire played in the individual’s death. The fire department will handle the investigation into the cause of the blaze and the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office will look to see if the death seems unusual, Lauer said. Ultimately, the county coroner’s office will determine a cause of death, he said.

The home was equipped with working smoke detectors. They were going off when firefighters arrived, Lauer said.

While he continued to work the scene Saturday evening, Lauer said he believed a wood stove inside the house sparked the fire.

February 11

Troy Schools consider four-day week

The Troy Public School Board will consider the adoption of a four-day week for the next school year when it meets on Feb. 14.

Superintendent Jacob Francom said the district has implemented a four-day schedule in the spring for about five years. This past fall, officials tried the condensed classroom schedule as well, dropping it only in October.

“We have four days a week this year in the fall and the spring, and we have a lot of people in the community saying, ‘We like this’ in the spring,” Francom said. “Now they’re saying, ‘Why don’t we go four days a week all the time?’”

February 15

Trego man sentenced for killing son

A Trego man accused of killing his adult son following years of abuse at his hands earned a partially suspended 30-year sentence in Lincoln County District Court on Feb. 7.

Scott Lee Kirkedahl, 58, saw all but five years of the sentence suspended. He will receive credit for 219 days of time served and must enroll in the state’s Connections Corrections Program.

District Judge Matthew Cuffe described it as a “sad and difficult case” as he handed down his sentence. The sentence allows for Kirkedahl to receive treatment for substance abuse and mental health issues, he said.

Kirkedahl pleaded guilty to mitigated deliberate homicide on Dec. 20 after details of the abuse emerged in a mental health evaluation by Dr. Michael Scolatti. Relatives of Kirkedahl and his 31-year-old son, Xennie, appearing in court last week, said they agreed with Scolatti’s report and supported the partially suspended sentence.

February 18

County meets with new Yaak Valley Forest Council Director

County commissioners last week welcomed a reopening of dialogue with the Yaak Valley Forest Council, but said protecting area residents and property from wildfire remained a priority.

“When we look at … the volatility of the county, when you’re growing anywhere for 400 to 800 million board feet a year and only treating 400 or 500 or 600 acres a year, we’re in a world of hurt,” said Jerry Bennett, chair of the board and Troy District representative.

His remarks came as commissioners met with Amy Pearson, the Yaak Valley Forest Council’s newly named executive director. Pearson, who joined commissioners during the board’s Feb. 9 meeting, said she hoped to restart dialogue about the Yaak.

February 22

Real estate agent specializing in relocating conservatives to Montana slapped with lawsuit

A local real estate agent and consultant that caters to out-of-state conservatives relocating to what’s known as the American Redoubt faces a breach of contract lawsuit in Lincoln County District Court.

Former client Rhona Thompson alleged that Idaho-based real estate agent Todd Savage and his Montana broker John Runkle sold a roughly $3 million piece of property out from underneath her in a lawsuit filed in January. Along with breach of contract, the suit accuses Savage and Runkle of breach of fiduciary duties and negligence, and seeks exemplary damages.

According to the complaint, Thompson, a California resident and trustee of the Delaware-based The Firebird Trust, approached Savage in August 2020 to help find a property to buy.

Savage signed a buyer broker agreement with the trust, entitling him to a 3 percent commission for any property bought. They also signed an agreement restricting Savage from showing the same property to competing buyers, court documents said. In return, the trust paid Savage $32,500 for associated fees and services, which the suit alleged that the Idaho real estate agent has kept.

Former asbestos worker wins $36.5 million lawsuit

Ralph Hutt worked at the W.R. Grace Co. vermiculite mill in Libby for just 18 months in 1968 and 1969.

Originally, he was given a paper mask to fight against the hazy, dusty conditions.

The paper mask, not so unlike today’s COVID-19 masks, quickly became overloaded with dust.

When he asked his supervisor about it, Hutt was told not to worry – it was just dust.

He requested a respirator. That request was denied by Grace officials.

February 25

Greenfield tapped as Cabinet Peaks CEO

Cabinet Peaks Medical Center has a new chief executive officer.

Officials with the medical facility announced the hiring of Tadd Greenfield, a Montana native, for the position in a Feb. 18 press release. Greenfield comes to Libby from Wyoming, where he recently finished a three-year contract as CEO of Three Rivers Health.

“The board of directors of Cabinet Peaks Medical Center are thrilled to welcome Tadd and his family to Libby and are confident that he will be a tremendous asset to the … team,” said Sarah Sorensen, board chair, in a statement.

March 4

Purkhiser arrested for allegedly assaulting partner

A man with a history of abuse who moved to the Libby area for a Facebook romance faces multiple felony charges after allegedly attacking his then-girlfriend in January.

Walter Jason Purkhiser, 42, has pleaded not guilty to partner or family member assault, third or subsequent offense, and two counts of tampering with witnesses and informants. He was arraigned in Lincoln County District Court on Feb. 14.

Libby man to graduate from Montana Highway Patrol Advanced Academy

A Libby man is one of 13 student officers slated to graduate from the Montana Highway Patrol Advanced Academy on March 4.

Virgil Sadewasser is set to begin his career as a Montana Highway Patrol trooper after completing 23 weeks of training. Sadewasser is one of just six Montana natives in the academy’s 74th graduating class. Other homegrown graduates include future troopers from Kalispell, Great Falls and Stevensville.

March 11

City wants county to seek pot tax

Libby city councilors this week formally petitioned the Lincoln County Board of Commissioners to pursue an additional 3 percent local tax on recreational marijuana sales.

The unanimous March 7 vote to send the request followed muted debate among city councilors. County commissioners now must decide whether to put the extra tax before voters in an upcoming election.

Mayor Peggy Williams said that the money collected through the additional tax — the state already taxes recreational marijuana sales at 20 percent — could help offset any repercussions of retail cannabis in Libby.

County consolidates polling locations

Lincoln County’s seven polling locations will soon be consolidated into three central hubs in the region’s major municipalities.

County commissioners approved the change in an unanimous March 9 vote. The move came at the behest of Election Administrator Paula Buff, who argued the proposal improves security and logistics.

“Taking a tour of the county, thinking about logistics and security and that kind of thing, in my mind it just makes sense,” she said. “It makes for a much more robust, secure election system.”

In north Lincoln County, approved voting at the High Road Youth Center in Eureka. In Troy, voters will be directed to the Troy Activity Center. In Libby, voters will no longer go to either the Ponderosa Room at City Hall or the VFW building, but the Memorial Events Center.

March 18

City councilors turn attention back to turkeys

When City Councilor Gary Beach broached the idea of contacting state officials to discuss getting a handle on Libby’s wild turkey population on March 7, colleague Hugh Taylor wished him luck.

“We may need to start that conversation again to see if we can get the state to help us,” Beach said.

“Their first answer was they weren’t willing to do anything,” replied Taylor dryly.

Beach and Taylor both sit on the city’s wildlife committee, which officials created several years ago to tackle the ostensibly wild animals that range through Libby on a regular basis. The group was tasked with developing a plan to address the city’s deer population, a priority owing to the spread of chronic wasting disease, first.

But turkeys were a close second.

March 22

Neighbors unload on gravel pit project

Concerns about water rights, air quality and property values – interspersed with insults, catcalls and implied threats – dominated a March 15 public meeting on a proposed gravel pit along Farm to Market Road.

Opposition to the project has simmered in the neighborhood since letters went out announcing Thompson Contracting Inc.’s pursuit of an opencut mining permit from the state earlier this year. It boiled over during a two-and-a-half hour gathering in the Ponderosa Room at Libby City Hall that featured officials from various state agencies, many of them left trying to explain to residents that they lacked the authority to block the project from moving ahead.

That didn’t sit well with neighbors, who said the project would destroy livelihoods and permanently mar the community south of Libby and White Haven.

“If the state does not step in and do something to protect these citizens, we — as citizens — might take it into our own hands,” said resident Lonnie Fosgate. “I don’t know. I’ve heard that comment from several people in the neighborhood.”

County leases JC Clubhouse to Libby Food Pantry

Despite passing on the former JC Clubhouse once already, the Libby Food Pantry will move into the Pioneer Park building as time runs out on the nonprofit’s effort to find a new home.

The Lincoln County Board of Commissioners inked a lease agreement with the community organization on March 16. The five-year contract runs the nonprofit $1 annually, though the group will be responsible for utilities.

March 25

Libby schools to test for lead in mid-spring

Superintendent Ron Goodman said this week that administrators in Libby plan to begin testing for lead levels in school water by late April or early May.

Goodman made the announcement after Kaiser Health News found that roughly half of the schools tested for lead by mid-February came back with high levels. In nearby Troy, 27 of 58 fixtures checked came back above the state’s limit for lead concentrations of 5 parts per billion, KHN reported.