Not guilty pleas in assault case

Cody Allen Allestad made his initial appearance before Judge John Mercer on Tuesday, entering not guilty pleas to two felony counts of strangulation of partner or family member, two misdemeanor counts of partner or family member assault, and one felony count of partner or family member assault. Judge Mercer set the jury trial for December 2.

According to the filed affidavit, on July 7, Sanders County Sheriff's deputies Devin Wegener and Patrick Barber responded to an address in Plains, where the reporting party advised that her daughter had been assaulted by Allestad and wanted him removed from the property. Deputies found Allestad in a camper at the end of the driveway. As Deputy Wegener was aware Allestad had multiple outstanding warrants, he took Allestad into custody and informed him that further investigation was going to be conducted.

Deputy Barber interviewed the victim, who was transported to the hospital. She detailed a history of domestic violence and later recalled further details of the incident, which further corroborated the facts underlying the charges.

Allestad, in speaking with Deputy Wegener after being advised of his rights, allegedly confessed to multiple assaults and strangulations during their relationship, which largely tracked with the statements made by the victim. Allestad stated that when she passed out, he got scared as he didn’t wish to kill her, he just wanted to put her to sleep so the fighting would stop.

Appearing for an initial appearance, Gabriel Sean Olesen pleaded not guilty to two misdemeanor counts of violation of an order of protection and one felony count of violation of an order of protection. Judge Mercer set a jury trial for December 2, 2024.

As alleged in the affidavit, on March 1, the protected party had reported that Olesen had been coming to her residence in Thompson Falls despite a temporary order of protection prohibiting him from doing so. On April 11, Detective April Phillips followed up with the protected party.

Detective Phillips spoke with a roommate, who alleged that she had seen Olesen at the residence at least three times.

Also on Tuesday, Kelly L. Keenan pleaded not guilty to a misdemeanor charge of criminal trespass to property and two felony charges of stalking and assault on a peace officer, during her initial appearance. After making it clear to Keenan that she needed to exactly follow the conditions of the order of protection now in place, Judge Mercer set this matter for jury trial on December 2.

As detailed in the charging documents, on June 26, Deputy Caleb Adkins was dispatched to a home near Plains, where a resident reported that her neighbor, Keenan, had been driving up and down the road for hours while screaming, yelling, and shooting a firearm. Keenan has an easement on a road passing through the the resident's property, and had been served with a notice of trespass/no contact by the Sheriff’s Office in 2022.

The resident told Deputy Adkins that one of their game cameras had taken a photo about 10 minutes earlier, showing a person holding a pistol heading toward their home. Deputy Adkins and two other officers located Keenan, who was wearing a black jumpsuit, gloves, and a ski mask, lying in the woods. A pistol was found on the ground where she was laying, loaded with a round in the chamber. With the grass in the area all flattened, it appeared to law enforcement that Keenan may have been laying in wait.

After Keenan had been placed in the patrol vehicle, she asked to have her ski mask removed. When Deputy Adkins got her out of the vehicle to remove the mask, Keenan allegedly fought being placed back in the vehicle, striking Deputy Adkins in the groin and thigh area while kicking at the deputies.

Jeriko Smith-Roach came back before the court on allegations that he violated the conditions of his probation. Smith-Roach entered denials to the allegations, with Judge Mercer setting this matter for a hearing on the merits on October 15.

As alleged in the filed report of violation, Smith-Roach failed to complete the required Phase II sex offender treatment, entered a bar, and attended a barn dance where minors were present without permission. Smith-Roach is also facing additional charges of sexual intercourse without consent in two separate cases, which took place prior to his sentencing in July 2022.