Ailport attempted murder case now headed back to trial

The attempted murder charge against Paul Glen Ailport is headed back to trial on May 12, after the judge deviated from a plea agreement by adding a weapons enhancement at sentencing.

Ailport, 65, entered an Alford plea in District Court in Polson on Dec. 5, 2024, to felony attempted deliberate homicide. In an Alford plea, a defendant concedes that the case, based on state’s evidence, would result in a conviction.

Ailport was sentenced to 100 years Feb. 13 in accordance with the plea agreement. However, visiting Judge John Larson of Missoula then added 10 years to the prison term as a “weapons enhancement.” That opened a narrow window of time for Ailport to reject the plea agreement and head to trial.

According to court records, at about 9:20 the morning of Nov. 10, 2023, reports were made to Lake County emergency dispatchers of a truck “crashing into a residence.” The vehicle was engulfed in flames and the driver was slumped over within the truck.

The reporting party indicated that the driver appeared to deliberately drive the truck into the residence. They also indicated that Ailport had previously threatened to drive his truck into his neighbor’s home on Paper Trail Road. One neighbor said Ailport had even asked which bedroom belonged to a certain family member.

The property owner pulled Aiplort from the truck. He had burns on his back, shoulders, right arm and hand. He was transported to a burn unit in Utah for treatment before returning to Utah to face charges.

An investigation documented “severe fire damage to the northern wall and siding” of the residence. A 19-year-old female was about to step into the shower when the collision knocked a steel beam through the wall, which narrowly missed her head.

The investigation also led to the discovery of a 228-shot “Triple Cannon” firework that had fallen out of the truck and ignited. Burn marks in the grass, caused by exploding fireworks, were also documented.

Ailport was already facing charges of criminal endangerment and criminal possession of dangerous drugs at the time. Those charges stem from an incident on July 13, 2023, when he allegedly fired a weapon towards neighbor’s homes while high on methamphetamine.