by Travis Mateer

When law enforcement does something good, like contribute to a decline in violent crime numbers, don’t you think they’d want to talk about it? Well, violent crimes numbers are supposedly down, but Jeremiah Petersen doesn’t want to discuss this with local media. My question is simple: why not? (emphasis mine):

Numbers from the Montana Board of Crime Control show a spike in violent crime during 2021 and 2022, but now things are ticking back down.

Here’s how the Missoula County data breaks down since 2021:

Aggravated assault dropped from 522 in 2021 to 496 in 2022 and 351 in 2023.

Forcible rapes decreased from 67 to 56 to 37.

Robberies fell from 62 to 51 to 40.

Negligent manslaughter and murder dropped from two to one, then zero.

We reached out to the Missoula County Sheriff’s Office to ask what might be driving the downward trend. The department declined an interview and referred us to the Missoula County attorney.

Why did Sheriff Petersen decline the interview? Perhaps the agency he referred local media to offers us a clue about Petersen’s reluctance. After all, who charges and prosecutes the cases that ultimately become part of Montana’s crime statistics? That’s right, the County Attorney’s Office.

The crimes that get charged, or NOT charged, can make it confusing for those outside the criminal justice system. For example, in the summer of 2020 I wrote about how Kirsten Pabst justified NOT prosecuting a drug dealer who stabbed his customer to death in a bathroom over a drug deal gone bad.

Now, three years later, it looks like I might be writing about the County Attorney’s Office potentially charging a young woman for using a knife to defend herself. Here’s the comment the young woman made on the blog post I wrote up in July:

The one you are talking about in this post that defended themselves is me. I cannot express enough how spot-on “anon” was for this incident. I am unfortunately being charged for this and my court date is pending. I was in-fact fearing for mine, my friend, and my boyfriends safety during this night due to the girls. I appreciate everyone who was or is taking their time to really understand what happened and why it did. I was in-fact defending myself. I am currently fighting lies in my said court case. It was indeed a four on two or more specifically a 1-1 and a 3-1, and if not for me defending myself it could’ve been more. I am happy to answer questions about this to an extent, and a huge thank you to the author of this post for bringing attention to the case. I already tried to comment on this once so I’m not sure if they have to be approved but hopefully this gets out there. Thank you again.

What’s going on here? Is this a numbers game to the County Attorney’s Office? Multiple assailants would mean multiple charges, right? Of course there’s a lot I don’t know, but I think asking questions is important.

Another act of collective violence happened recently when six young men allegedly lured their victim into a house where a savage beat down occurred.

From the link:

On December 4, 2023, the Missoula Police Department announced that they are investigating a vicious assault that occurred on the night of December 1st in the 1400 block of Van Buren St. According to Public Information Officer Whitney Bennett, a male juvenile victim was lured into a home where he was subjected to a brutal assault by six suspect juvenile males. 

“Videos of the assault have been circulating on social media platforms,” Bennett said. “We strongly urge the public to refrain from participating in the dissemination of these videos. Instead, we ask for your cooperation in preserving the victim’s dignity and privacy. If you possess reliable information relevant to the investigation, we implore you to come forward and contact our Detective Captain Eddie McClean (406) 552-6332.” 

When I first saw this headline I was impressed that law enforcement was actually investigating this crime, then I read that video of the violence was circulating online, so OF COURSE law enforcement had to get involved, and part of that involvement is trying to SUPPRESS the evidence that concerning acts of violence are happening in our caring, liberal community.

This morning, while writing up today’s post, I ran across another act of violence being investigated by the Sheriff’s Office. Here’s the request on Facebook for help in identifying the suspect who allegedly shot someone yesterday:

It sure seems like a lot of violence is happening despite what the numbers are supposedly telling us about crime in Missoula. Who stands to benefit from the impression that crime numbers are going DOWN? The guy who wants to be reelected Attorney General, that’s who.

I put in a call to the Attorney General’s office on Monday, but so far no one has called me back. I sure hope they do before I publish what I’m about to publish regarding the grief industry and the Rebekah Barsotti case.

If you appreciate what real journalism can accomplish in a corrupt town like Missoula, then consider donating to Travis’ Impact Fund (TIF), or you can use the donation button at my about page.

Thanks for reading!