When judge changes mind, defendant reconsiders options

A 35-year-old Libby man was prepared to plead guilty to criminal endangerment Monday in Lincoln County District Court, but when Judge Matt Cuffe decided to ignore the plea deal he decided to weigh his options.

Thomas Alestine Eaker was facing a charge of strangulation of a partner or family member after an incident in March when authorities said he tried to strangle his ex-girlfriend.

But in a May 29 plea deal, Eaker opted to plead guilty to an amended charge of criminal endangerment. The deal called for a three-year suspended sentence.

But Cuffe said he wasn’t going to follow the terms of the plea deal and sentenced Eaker to three years in custody. 

After a brief chat between Eaker and his attorney, Maury Solomon, Solomon told the court he planned to file a motion to withdraw the plea. Cuffe gave them a week to do so.

Eaker is in the county jail after he violated his release terms in June. According to a report by county probation officer Vanessa Williamson, Eaker had been homeless, wasn’t checking in and struggling with alcohol since his June 2 release.

The case began March 10, a Lincoln County Sheriff’s deputy reported to a disturbance on Leisure Lane along with Libby police officers. There they spotted one person running across a field toward a trailer.

They went to a bus where they knew this person was living, but did not see anyone else around. Authorities reported they also saw Eaker run up the road and disappear into the woods or one of the many buildings of vehicles on the property.

After a search did not turn up Eaker, they talked to the person they initially saw running. The person’s parents then showed up and said they would come to the sheriff’s office and make a complete statement.

Authorities were told this person had been in a relationship since July of 2024 and Eaker had moved into the bus with the person. A few weeks before the incident, she broke up with him and he moved out of the bus. They broke up because of ongoing violence between them, court documents said, turning violent during the winter.

On the day of the incident, Eaker messaged the person and wanted to talk. Since he was not allowed on the property where the person lived due to trespassing issues, they met on a neighbor's property. 

According to the court documents, the conversation did not go well as Eaker was unwilling to accept their break up. When the person tried to talk away from Eaker, he allegedly grabbed her by the throat and began to strangle her with his hand and arm.

According to court documents, someone heard what was happening and called the mother of the person who arrived on the property. Eaker saw them and released the person, who ran through the woods. Authorities noted red marks on the person’s neck and an open wound caused by the thumbnail of a right hand.

Eaker faces five years in jail and a fine up to $50,000.

In 2018, Eaker was charged with strangling a partner, drug possession and partner or family member assault. He pleaded guilty to the drug charge and got a deferred sentence.