News briefs
April 2
Gorder sentenced to 5 years
POLSON — District Court Judge C.B. McNeil sent ex-con Paul David Gorder back to Montana State Prison on an 18-year sentence with 13 years suspended last Wednesday.
The 38-year-old man was charged with mitigated deliberate homicide when he was 20 in 1992 for taking part in the brutal gang-beating and murder of 51-year-old Luis Mena. In February, Gorder was extradited back to Montana from Alaska where he violated probation by using cocaine and marijuana.
On March 18, Gorder admitted to some of the violation allegations against him and his probation was revoked. Probation officers reporting the recent drug violations commented in court documents that they felt Gorder needed to return before the Court and address the violations “before he is completely out of control.”
At his sentencing the morning of March 25, the Court recommended that he be considered for placement in Connections Corrections and pre-release programs with the approval of the Department of Corrections.
For his part in the Dec. 5, 1991, murder Gorder received a 40-year prison sentence with 12 years suspended. Three years after his sentencing Gorder was released on parole, which he completed 32 months later. In 2002 Gorder was allowed a supervised probation interstate compact to Anchorage, Ala.
All four men involved in the murder were charged with deliberate homicide and aggravated kidnapping and were facing the possibility of the death penalty during the 1992 court proceedings. Each of them ended up convicted of “mitigated” deliberate homicide — which Montana Code says takes into consideration the persons being under the influence of “extreme mental or emotional stress” for which there is reasonable explanation or excuse.
- Reporter Ty Hampton
Pedestrian killed along Hwy 35
FINLEY POINT — A 36-year-old Polson area man crossing Highway 35 at milemarker 10.2 was killed after being struck by a Jeep on the evening of March 23.
The victim, identified by the Lake County Sheriff’s Office as William Yarck, was reportedly standing in the middle of the road at approximately 9:57 p.m. when he was hit by a 2005 Jeep Liberty.
According to Montana Highway Patrol Sgt. Randy Owens, the St. Ignatius man driving the Jeep took evasive measures to miss Yarck, but struck him anyway. The driver and other passengers in the vehicle were uninjured in the accident and immediately called 911 to report the incident. Yarck was pronounced dead at the scene.
Sgt. Owens reported that Yarck was a Flathead Lake east shore resident who is believed to have been living nearby the scene of the accident four miles north of Finley Point. Owens added that it was still undetermined why the man had been in the roadway and that the incident is still under investigation.
-Reporter Ty Hampton
HWY 93 bridge resurfacing bids end
POLSON — Bidding on the upgrades of Polson’s Armed Forces Memorial Bridge ended this week, and a state Department of Transportation board will review submitted bids on Monday.
The contractor receiving the bid will set the schedule for construction, MDT communication director Charity Watt-Levis said, but it shouldn’t be later than spring or early summer.
The bridge connects U.S. Highway 93 traffic north to Kalispell, and is in serious need of major surface repairs, according to MDT officials. Proposed work will include removing the upper part of the bridge’s deck and replacing it with a new concrete overlay. MDT also plans to restore the slope at the northeast end of the bridge.
“We understand that this bridge is a vital transportation link to the surrounding communities, so we want to fix the bridge with as few disruptions as possible and make sure that these repairs last for many years to come,” said MDT bridge area engineer Nigel Mends at a public comment meeting in early December.
At the December meeting it was reported that work crews will complete 1/4 of the deck at a time, and MDT estimates that construction will last for 29 workdays per side of the bridge. With construction crews working six days a week, MDT hopes to complete half of the bridge in five weeks.
During construction, bridge traffic will be reduced to a single lane.
-Editor Jenna Cederberg
Former judge pleads to drug charges
PABLO — A former Confederated Salish and Kootenai tribal associate judge pleaded no contest to two misdemeanor charges recently.
Former judge Ann Clairmont pleaded no contest to criminal possession of dangerous drugs, and criminal possession of drug paraphernalia on Feb. 11, with Judge Stephen Lozar presiding.
Clairmont resigned from her judicial position on Nov. 18, allegedly after she found out about the investigation.
According to court documents, on Nov. 18, tribal officers went to Clairmont’s home in Polson to apprehend Clarence Khalif Thomas for parole violation. No occupants were found in the home, yet a blue metal pipe was on the coffee table “in plain sight.”
A search warrant for drugs and drug paraphernalia was obtained by tribal officer Bryan Fyant, and additional pipes and marijuana “seeds and stems” were found within the home.
The imposition of a sentence has been deferred for six months, under the conditions of Clairmont completing chemical dependency assessment and obeying all laws. If Clairmont complies with the conditions, she may withdraw her pleas after six months and the charges dismissed.
-Reporter Erin Scott
Area channel changes
Due to FCC requirements, Blacktail TV has moved KREM 2 of Spokane from channel 10 to channel 50 in the Polson area. A new channel search would enter the change into your TV’s memory. Blacktail TV president Steve Fit stated the three Missoula channels broadcast locally (KAPPA 8 on Ch. 11, KTMF 23 on ch.14, and KECI 13 on ch.16) would most likely go digital by the end of the year.
-Courtesy of Bernard Dempsey, vice-president Blacktail TV Tax District