Libby ex-con pleads not guilty to drug, fleeing charges

A Libby man facing drug-related charges after an incident last weekend on Farm to Market Road earlier this month pleaded not guilty Monday.

Joshua David Hoffman, 47, faces five counts, including one felony, after he allegedly was involved in a police chase on the afternoon of Saturday, July 8.

The felony charge is for possession of methamphetamine. The misdemeanor counts include driving on a suspended license, fleeing from an officer, obstruction and criminal possession of drug paraphernalia.

Hoffman made his initial appearance on July 10 in front of Judge Jay Sullivan in Lincoln County Justice Court. Sullivan set Hoffman’s bond at $40,000. At his arraignment in Lincoln County District Court, Hoffman pleaded not guilty to all five charges. He is being held in the Lincoln County Detention Center on $40,000 bail. Hoffman’s next court hearing is Oct. 10.

According to the probable cause statement by Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Andrew Smith, he was parked when he saw a gray Dodge Durango that he recognized as one he had stopped previously with Hoffman driving. He used a monocular to identify the driver as Hoffman. Smith wrote that he recognized the man from previous law enforcement encounters.

Smith pulled out and said his intention was to have dispatch check Hoffman’s driver’s license status. Before he made the call, Smith said he saw the Durango turn onto Frazey Court and speed up in an apparent attempt to elude the officer. Smith estimated the vehicle was driving at about 50 miles per hour on Frazey Loop. The speed limit is 25 mph. Smith turned on his patrol vehicle’s emergency lights and siren. But Hoffman allegedly continued to flee before coming to abrupt stop, leaving the vehicle and running behind a residence.

Smith said he yelled, “Sheriff’s office, stop running,” but Hoffman kept running. Smith reported that after running through several yards, he caught up with Hoffman.

While placing handcuffs on Hoffman, Smith reported seeing a white container in the defendant’s hand as well as a syringe on the ground that the officer believed had fallen out of the container.

A subsequent field test determined a substance in the syringe was methamphetamine, according to Smith. In addition, the other half of the container Smith got off of Hoffman was found and a substance in it field tested positive for meth. A check of his driver’s license determined his privileges were currently suspended.

A 2019 story in The Western News reported Hoffman received an eight-month federal prison sentence for illegal gun possession. According to a 2004 story in the Helena Independent Record, Hoffman received a one-year federal prison term for his involvement in a drug ring that distributed methamphetamine.

A conviction for meth possession may result in a maximum sentence of five years in the Montana State Prison. For the other counts, the maximum is one year in the county jail on the fleeing from police charge.