Before I worked with Leah in a commercial kitchen, she recognized me from my time working at the shelter. As someone who had been getting services at the time, I’m glad she had a good impression of me as I worked toward the nearly impossible goal of helping people amidst serious drug, alcohol and mental health issues.
Leah wasn’t homeless at the time of her death, but her return to drugs and alcohol was a definite factor. The judicial system already had its claws in her thanks to a DUI, and drugs as potent as Fentanyl might have been involved, if Leah’s own reports about what was happening to her can be trusted. Unfortunately not everything Leah was reporting before her death could be trusted, since I know of numerous calls she made to 911 because of what appeared to be paranoia at the time.
While the police have at least one person of interest I know of, my own inquiries and familiarity with sketchy street characters means there are people I would be looking at were I to have the ability to do so, like the asshole who rides his bike around town with different masks on. His street name? Jacoby.
Jacoby was actually seen hanging out with Leah at her apartment at least once in the weeks leading up to her death. I’ve been asking around about Jacoby and the reports aren’t good, including Flippers kicking him out after he repeatedly came in to pocket candy. I was told his behavior escalated quickly with the race card when told to stop coming in and just taking shit.
Another person of interest is someone I’ve become very familiar with since he assaulted two Department of Transportation staff during a 2022 homeless camp cleanup I was involved with. After Todd Keith Spence continued his troubling behavior, which includes allegedly spiking Cannabis with Fentanyl and literally killing people, like I reported in 2023, he is DEFINITELY someone I consider capable of being a serial killer.
To back up this perspective I spoke with someone who lived out at the Reserve Street camps with Spence and she said he would absolutely target women by zeroing in on couples having relationship trouble. Then, when a woman would storm off upset, Spence would quickly attempt to “help” her by giving her drugs. Is this the kind of predator who might have actual kills under his belt?
What other fun characters live in Leah’s hood?
For those who read of the recent SWAT action in Missoula, this happened just a few blocks from where Leah was found dead:
Missoula police served a warrant Thursday afternoon, prompting a large law enforcement presence on the 1700 block of South 4th Street West.
The Missoula Police Department, along with SWAT and assisting agencies, carried out the warrant.
Whitney Bennett, communications officer for the department, originally told NBC Montana one man was arrested.
Timothy Valentine, 39, is charged with resisting arrest and obstructing a peace officer.
In a follow up press release, police announced Isaiah Littlebull, 27, was taken into custody for resisting arrest.
With the Missoula County Sheriff’s Office no longer releasing publicly available mugshots without hoop-jumping I’m not willing to do, here are two images I grabbed off Facebook of our local gangstas!
If this wasn’t delightful enough regarding the aggressive activity in my hood where my co-worker’s death is being investigated as a homicide, a dispute last night–SUNDAY NIGHT–resulted in gunshots and, so far, ZERO arrests!
Missoula police arrived on the scene and found the people who were involved in a verbal and physical disturbance in the 1600 block of South 3rd Street West.
Missoula Police Department spokeswoman Whitney Bennett says officers confirmed that a gun had been fired.
A 23-year-old woman, a 22-year-old man, and a 21-year-old man were involved in the incident.
No injuries were reported as a result of the gunfire.
According to a news release, no arrests have been made as an investigation into the incident continues.
When I was pulled over on a Sunday night a few months ago on my way to work because my car still has headlight issues, and my license still has suspension issues, our local police had no problem arresting ME and taking ME to jail. Do you feel safer, Missoula, knowing scary situations like me and my journalism and my friend and his stick are treated as the REAL threats while Missoula devolves into gangster land drama fit for the streets of Chicago or Baltimore?
One of the final possibilities I will note here at the end of this sad post is the real possibility that Leah was so unable to safely walk because of her level of intoxication that she fell into the water diversion ditch and accidentally drowned. In this scenario the culture of alcohol and drug abuse that Missoula nurtures with its ubiquitous victim card for every addict, but played without any actual hope for actual help from legitimate treatment services, was the culprit, like it has been for so many on the streets who have succumbed to addiction.
There are other aspects of this case I am choosing to withhold from publication, for now, but I’ll keep tracking this case as closely as I can.
Thanks for reading.
Thank you for writing, any updates?
Not yet, but I’ll write another post soon regardless.