Month: November 2022

by Travis Mateer

When I read this kind of news article published by the Missoulian yesterday about the 88 year old woman murdered east of Missoula, in Clinton, I wonder how much harassment had to occur to get the spokesperson for the Sheriff’s Office, Jeanette Smith, to say this about the case (emphasis mine):

A homicide investigation is still underway after authorities found an 88-year-old woman dead in a Clinton house in September.

Deputies responded to an assault at the 5600 block of Donovan Creek Road in Clinton on Sept. 25. The victim was identified as Delphine A. Farmer, the Missoula County Sheriff’s Office reported. Farmer was pronounced dead on-scene.

The Missoula County Sheriff’s Office is waiting for forensics testing results, spokesperson Jeannette Smith said on Wednesday. She noted the time for results isn’t in the control of the sheriff’s office.

No arrests have been made in connection to the investigation, she said.

In another case, this one an “officer involved shooting” that happened back in August, the name of the man killed by law enforcement wasn’t released until nearly three weeks later. Still being withheld from the public is the name of the agency responsible for taking the lethal shot.

Maybe the public NEEDS to be kept in the dark about the work being done behind the scenes to do dangerous police work, like stemming the flow of hard drugs into Montana?

If keeping the public ignorant about what’s happening has merit in the world of illegal drugs and Confidential Informants (CIs), then Jeremiah Petersen is going to be a GREAT Sheriff for Missoula County. Why? Because of his experience operating within our High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area and running the jail, of course.

If law enforcement is going to be increasingly coordinating with mental health professionals to “help our most vulnerable community members”, then it might be worth examining how law enforcement agencies use confidential informants.

Regular Zoom Chron commenter, J. Kevin Hunt, provided an anecdotal story in a recent post that I find quite interesting. Here is the part of the comment relevant to this post:

Detective Guy Baker? He protects his snitches and gives them Get Out of Jail Free cards, in my opinion. He did that when my mom, who was afflicted with Lewy Body dementia, got swindled by a door-to-door huckster with literature about his fake veterans assistance group, who got $2500 out of her to do some house repair and winterization. He did almost nothing and was not seen again. Baker convinced Mom to sign an absolutely worthless “settlement agreement” he drew up, and she of course got burned. I made multiple attempts to reach Baker from Oregon; when I finally got him on the phone, he was surly, blamed my mother for getting swindled and said details of her statements were inconsistent. He had given Mom a story about how the felon who burned her was trying to live an honest life, and how Baker had made the crook on parole a personal project. Baker was rude to me and helped the hustler burn my Mom. Obvious to me that he was protecting a snitch who knows that as long as Baker keeps doing so, the rat won’t get sent back to prison. 

Even though Petersen has no political opposition, it’s still important to be asking questions about how he plans on steering the Sheriff’s Office, especially considering the immense burden taxpayers are going to be saddled with thanks to pay parity schemes and massive, seven figure settlements.

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by Travis Mateer

While I listened to the fascinating perspective of Rogers International owner, David Pritchard, as he reflected on the past year of providing security to homeless sites around Missoula, I realized how incredibly valuable the work of citizens like Kevin Davis has become.

Would local media outlets have landed an hour-long interview with Pritchard, or offered their audiences a chance to ask questions and get direct feedback?

Nope, but they WILL get the same chance I had to listen and write about what David Pritchard is communicating to Missoula and the local officials who contracted his company to secure the periphery of homeless service delivery sites, like the Poverello Center, the Transitional Safe Outdoor Space, and the Authorized Camping Site, which is closing sometime this month.

To begin, let’s take a look at some numerical claims Pritchard makes, like his impression there are close to 800 “houseless” individuals in Missoula. Is this accurate? While I wouldn’t be surprised, Pritchard didn’t have any “hard facts” to back up this assertion.

Another number that seems significant is the $2.5 million dollars it WOULD have cost had real cops been paid to do the exact same work. Pritchard said this figure was referenced by city officials, and it’s significantly higher because of pensions, training, and other factors.

While private security is “always cheaper”, according to Pritchard, Rogers International is REALLY cheap, considering Pritchard boasted about not spending all the contract money while ALSO complaining that the city didn’t provide his guys PPE when asked.

Having worked with the same population Rogers was contracted to work with, there were some points I could certainly sympathize with, like the sentiment “the powers that be” are happy with the appearance of things being handled, when the reality on the ground is much different.

And what is that reality looking like to Rogers International? Lots of weapons, says Pritchard, especially machetes. Lots of machetes. And lots of overdoses. Pritchard’s exact words were “multiple, daily overdoses”.

It’s with this hell-scape in mind that perhaps the most troubling comments were made by this Veteran who hires primarily Veterans, and that’s when Pritchard said the homeless community was “not too far off from what you see overseas.”

I’m not sure I jive with this assessment, but I haven’t been overseas to check out the veracity of this comparison.

Closer to home, Pritchard offers another statement that I do jive with: “I don’t think their future plans are going to pan out the way they claim the are going to,” he said near the end of the discussion.

I agree.

Now that Rogers International has been replaced by Black Knight, Pritchard has this prediction: Black Knight’s new model of providing a more “hands-off” approach to security will be ineffective.

The types of situations Pritchard described where his staff were effective generally required an immediate response. If you can’t be there in 60 seconds, what’s the point, Pritchard asked? Good question.

There were other fun parts of the interview as well, like Pritchard insinuating the controversial Missoulian article was a setup between Missoulian intern, Griffen Smith, and his “friend” on City Council. Would that be Daniel Carlino?

David Pritchard didn’t have to say anything about his company’s time securing homeless sites around Missoula, but I’m sure glad he did.

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by Travis Mateer

A fresh letter to the editor in the Missoulian is making me wonder if ANYONE actually supports the Crisis Mill Levy.

Here’s Peg Shea and Marianne Moon teaming up to ask our coercive local leadership to hit the pause button on this levy (emphasis mine)

The components of the proposed Missoula County Crisis Levy have not been fully explained to voters. As it currently exists, the proposed Levy will fund 11 programs: two, that are losing current “COVID” funds (Safe Outdoor Space and Mobile Support Team); seven that are currently funded by a combination of federal grants, state and local funds (including the existing Mental Health Levy and the Community Assistance Fund), and third-party reimbursement funding (e.g. Medicaid etc.); as well as two new programs. All are critical so fiscal partners such as the State of Montana, private foundations, United Way and hospitals will continue to be needed to provide all necessary funding. It appears it is easier for the county to levy taxes than it is to work with partners, write and manage grants, and braid private and public funds for continuation and enhancement of services. Before citizens can vote responsibly we need to understand what current funds the levy will replace, what funding will remain and be shown a budget for the 11 services. Now is not the time to increase taxes without more clarity, and discussion, and a concrete plan and budget.

At the Missoula Current a viewpoint from Valerie Hedquist makes Kumbaya claims I’m definitely skeptical about, like this one (emphasis mine):

Missoula’s Crisis Intervention Levy will continue to provide these services. A coalition of law enforcement officers, medical care professionals, and members of community religious denominations has already united to support Missoula’s current care intervention strategies. (https://www.savinglivesandmoney.org/)

Ok, so there’s a COALITION OF LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS. Where are they? That fancy website in the quote should have evidence of this coalition, right?

I found a page where the endorsers are named, but where is our Sheriff, T.J. McDermott? Or our NEW Sheriff, Jeremiah Petersen? I don’t even see Missoula’s Chief of Police, Jaeson White. Why not?

On the endorsers page there is some content that highlights how this money will, in part, help alleviate the stress in jail. Since our jail is run by the Sheriff’s Office, you would think the LEAST they could do is endorse the levy. Here’s the quote with my emphasis:

These programs have successfully changed, and saved, lives. At the same time, they have
helped keep our community safe and reduced stress on our busy ERs and jails. Unless we invest in the health and safety of our community, these support teams and other services will stop operating in Missoula and we will lose the progress we have made in recent years.

Yes, the lack of support from the Sheriff’s Office for the mill levy is rather conspicuous, but it’s not a mystery why. Obviously they are VERY BUSY litigating Missoula County into a multi-million dollar budget crisis that is being scantly reported on, considering the ramifications. From the link:

Missoula County could owe millions to the Missoula County Sheriff and detention officers as the local government enters litigation in a lawsuit stemming from pay discrepancies.

Reep, Bell & Jasper P.C., the law firm that represents the sheriff and detention officers in the suit, estimates the county owes $2 million to $3 million in unpaid wages, plus potential wage penalties that could total an additional $2.2 million to $3.3 million. Should the county lose the suit in litigation, wage laws also require a losing employer to pay the employees’ attorneys’ fees and costs.

The suit, filed in Missoula County District Court on Oct. 14, alleges the county owes back wages for three years’ worth of work to the sheriff and between 80 and 90 detention officers.

What’s going on here? Let me offer an analogy: you’re getting mauled by a bear and from the corner of your eye you see the glint of a badge in the late fall sun. Is help on the way? Sure, if help is taking a grenade, pulling the pin, then hiding behind a tree as the carnage ensues, help is absolutely on the way with the Missoula County Sheriff’s Office!

Who else is helping out this crisis levy? The new guy who owns Wordens, a nice place to get your gut-rot alcohol and cigarettes, of course!

Who else is giving their testimonial? How about a guy with a nice beard who makes sure the crazies get plenty of psych meds from BIG PHARMA!

Yes, these guys support you having $5 million taken every year in perpetuity for things that COULD be assisted by that money, but this guy, for some reason, is sitting on the side lines.

This image is taken from a 2014 candidate forum, a distant time when our outgoing Sheriff identified as a jack-ass. It’s shocking how much can change in 8 years.

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