Month: January 2022

by Travis Mateer

Yesterday I spoke with Bob Vosen and learned that the Montana Department of Transportation (MDOT) will be contracting with the same private security, Rogers International, that the city has contracted with to provide security at multiple homeless sites around Missoula.

According to Bob, Rogers will be conducting “sweeps” of the area twice a day to ensure campers don’t return to the area now that enforcement will allegedly be taking place.

Earlier this week I wrote about how one client is refusing to leave his spot under the north side of the bridge. I assume any enforcement of trespassing will be done by REAL cops, then, once Rogers International has been empowered to patrol, they’ll still have to rely on law enforcement to come in if new resistance emerges. Like, for example, the transient population that blows through during the summer months.

Rogers International is just the newest security firm to get government money providing services. Black Knight has also gotten government work, along with a Spokane-based security firm, Phoenix.

Here’s an article from November 2020 about local government shifting from Black Knight to Phoenix Protective for that critical courthouse lawn/homeless harasser contract:

The city and county of Missoula are both taking a second look at security protocols and will likely make a number of changes in the weeks and months ahead.

Missoula County will start by moving from Black Knight Security and Investigation to a new contract with Phoenix Protective Corp. out of Spokane in an effort to tighten access to the downtown courthouse and improve customer service.

So, when a homeless client I interviewed had to urgently vacate his bowels, doing so right near the east door of the County Courthouse, it was Phoenix that exited the building to assess and call 911.

Luckily we got to my studio before the fuzz showed up.

I’ll be on-site today to see how things are developing with “A” and the tremendous amount of debris he’s accumulated over the last 3 years, so stay tuned here for reports you won’t read anywhere else.

Thanks for reading!

by Travis Mateer

I’d like to say this was a full, uninterrupted conversation, but that was not in the cards.  I think that mercury retrograde may have something to do with it.

Enjoy what I got, and thanks for listening.

by Travis Mateer

UPDATE WITH CONTACT INFO BELOW!

I was glad to see local media cover the still missing case of Rebekah Barsotti. I wanted to highlight some of the things that stood out to me from the article, especially for those who refuse to pay the Missoulian subscription fee and would therefore not be able to take note of the developments.

Since private investigators have become involved, the Sheriff of Mineral County, Sheriff Toth, wanted the Missoulian to know they are following up on leads. From the link:

These investigators are separate entities from local law enforcement, and Mineral County Sheriff Mike Toth said his team has continues to follow reliable leads passed along to them. He also said the Montana Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigators will be coming to Superior in a few weeks to review Mineral County’s case file on Rebekah.

“We’re at where we’re at,” Toth said.

The next part is confusing, but maybe that’s because I was told by the Missoula County Sheriff’s Department never had the case, they were just helping out, so that would make “returning” the case inaccurate.

From the link (emphasis mine):

In September, the Missoula County Sheriff’s Office issued a news release saying all leads have been exhausted in relation to Barsotti’s disappearance. The case was returned to Mineral County, where it remains an active missing persons case.

The next part of the article finally introduces something that has been omitted in the reporting of this case thus far, and that’s claims of domestic violence.

For Mastrovito, her daughter’s case has transitioned into an effort to raise domestic violence awareness, citing allegations that Barsotti’s former spouse was abusive. Authorities have not connected the case to domestic violence.

To get to the connection that authorities refuse to make you have to read nearly to the end of the article to get this:

Last March, David Barsotti, who Rebekah was separated from, was arrested on suspicion of partner or family member assault that caused a reasonable apprehension of bodily injury, according to court documents filed in to the Mineral County Justice Court. As a result of the arrest, David was ordered to have no contact with Rebekah.

That March interaction with law enforcement certainly seems like a big red flag, but I’m not an investigator, so what do I know?

I’ll continue tracking this story as the search continues.

UPDATE

If you have ANY information about Rebekah Barsotti, please contact private investigator James Terry. He can be reached at 813-993-2242.

Thank you.

by Travis Mateer

The title of this post is not a sensationalist casting for clicks, it’s a genuine question I now have after several direct conversations with a man who has lived under the north side of the Reserve Street bridge for over 3 years.

The conversation I recorded with “A” yesterday is my last-ditch effort to provide clear evidence to contrast the claims being made by County Commissioner, Josh Slotnick, to a local business man, that this man is considering relocating to the official camp down the street from the bridge.

He is not.

What is discernible from the audio I recorded is mostly just my voice. “A” is inside a tent, so his responses to me are too muffled to hear. I went back later in the morning, hoping to have a better conversation, but “A”‘s dog convinced me to turn around and leave.

Before I left I communicated the existence of funds from the Lets Improve Reserve Street Facebook Group organizer to help individuals with relocation costs. I was able to hear his response that the church, River of Life, is supposedly going to help this man, so I’m going to reach out to them later today.

Here’s the audio:

I guess this man doesn’t believe the authority of this sign, newly posted, that his time under the bridge is coming to an end on Tuesday.

And here’s a portion of the email I sent the coordinator of Missoula’s 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness, Emily Armstrong, after I took this picture and spoke with “A”.

I’m not going to let anyone involved with Missoula’s HIC (Homeless Industrial Complex) evade the fact my effective maintenance of this area, in collaboration with the Health Department and the Clark Fork Coalition, ended when I left my position as Homeless Outreach Coordinator in 2016. Since then there has been a slow reestablishment of entitled permanency that’s taken hold among the people living in this area.

The work to prepare “A”, mentally, for this coming transition was not done, from my perspective. What does that mean when enforcement finally returns to this area tomorrow?

I’m sure there will be more to report on this situation this week, so stay tuned. And please consider donating to my GoFundMe page if citizen journalism is something you find value in.

by Travis Mateer

I’m glad the protectors of the cultural status quo in Missoula don’t need my money. It must mean that the cultural institutions and promotional businesses I am trying to access simply have enough from the RIGHT kind of cultural productions to be able to turn their backs on my bank account.

My first hint of this came last month when my $100 dollar deposit at the Roxy was suddenly refunded and my contract to rent a theater cancelled. I was given TWO excuses why this occurred, both of which I suspect were bullshit.

Now I’m trying to get a billboard and the guy I was working with at Lamar is suddenly not responding. Am I reading too much into this?

Last week the first hour of Engen’s Missoula was shown at a church and it received a FANTASTIC reaction, inspiring me to launch the TAT (TIF Awareness Tour).

If your church would like to get TAT’d, you can contact me at willskink at yahoo dot com. I am offering this exclusively to churches, since it was a church that provided some early support, though other institutions will be considered on a case-by-case basis by the TAC (TIF Awareness Committee).

While I’m hoping the billboard situation is just a result of miscommunication, I’m developing contingencies (of the guerrilla variety) to supplement conventional promotional strategies. I think PLAN B will be ready to roll this week.

I’ve got a lot of content planned for the coming week, so stay tuned. And if you’re feeling generous, consider donating to my GoFundMe page.