Man charged after crashing into Kalispell house
SCOTT SHINDLEDECKER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 4 years, 11 months AGO
A Kalispell woman narrowly avoided being injured after a pickup truck struck her home a few feet from her bed early Tuesday morning.
The driver of the Ford F-150, Evan Wayne Gardner, 36, of Kalispell, is facing charges resulting from the crash, including felony criminal endangerment and misdemeanor DUI.
According to the charging document, the woman told a Kalispell police officer she was asleep at her home on Third Avenue West North when she awoke to the sound of breaking glass. She saw headlights through her bedroom window and when she looked, she saw a pickup truck had crashed into one of the bedroom walls.
She also told the officer she saw a man trying to free the truck from where it rested on her porch.
Another officer saw Gardner standing near the driver’s side of the truck holding a black and red ratchet strap.
A third officer smelled alcohol when he spoke to Gardner. Gardner reportedly kept asking for someone to contact his business partner so he could come and get a dog inside the truck. The officer said Gardner’s speech was slurred.
When the officer asked Gardner to perform field sobriety tests, the man allegedly refused and declined to give a blood sample. The officer then got a warrant to obtain a sample of Gardner’s blood.
According to the charging document, a review of Gardner’s criminal history indicated he had two previous convictions for DUI.
Other court documents indicated Gardner was cited for DUI in Whitefish in December 2009.
Gardner faces a maximum of 10 years in the Montana State Prison on the endangerment charge and one year on the DUI charge.
Gardner is being held in the Flathead County Detention Center. His arraignment is set for 9 a.m. Thursday, April 29.
Scott Shindledecker may be reached at 758-4441 or [email protected].
ARTICLES BY SCOTT SHINDLEDECKER
Libby Loggers tennis splits with Bigfork
The boys team claimed a 6-1 win while the Bigfork girls were 6-1 winners.
Lincoln Co. gets Major Disaster Declaration for federal $
According to an April 10 press release from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Pres. Donald Trump recently signed the requests for Major Disaster Declaration status that will free up money to help with cleanup and repair work.
Internet romance results in criminal fraud allegation
The court filing alleges Eglise-Beam convinced the...