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Suspect in attempted knife attack sentenced

DERRICK PERKINS | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 2 years, 5 months AGO
by DERRICK PERKINS
NEWS EDITOR Derrick Perkins serves as News Editor at the Daily Inter Lake. He oversees daily news coverage and works closely with reporters to plan, edit and publish stories across print and digital platforms. Perkins helps coordinate coverage of local government, public safety, business and community developments throughout Northwest Montana. He works with the reporting staff to strengthen journalism while maintaining consistent daily coverage. His role helps ensure the newsroom delivers timely, accurate reporting that readers rely on. IMPACT: Derrick’s work keeps readers informed about the decisions and events shaping their communities every day. | November 6, 2023 11:00 PM

A 30-year-old arrested after allegedly chasing a man around a Flathead Valley apartment building with a knife last year earned a partially suspended sentence to county jail in October. 

Prosecutors initially charged Raymond Carl Tommy with felony assault with a weapon following his Dec. 7, 2022 arrest at a Montana 35 building. They amended the charge to misdemeanor negligent endangerment Sept. 14 after Tommy took a plea deal, according to court records. 

Tommy came to the attention of Flathead County Sheriff’s Office deputies after the apartment building’s manager phoned authorities, telling them they had seen one man chase another around the property with a knife, court documents said. The manager allegedly identified Tommy as the man wielding the knife. 

Deputies found an apparently unarmed Tommy, clad only in underwear, pacing around the manager’s office, according to court documents. They arrested him after he refused to comply with their instructions, court documents said. 

The manager later turned Tommy’s alleged weapon over to investigators, telling them they had surveillance footage of him trying to hide the blade, court documents said. 

Judge Amy Eddy, who presided over the case, ordered Tommy to undergo a fitness evaluation in January at the behest of his defense attorneys. After Tommy initially was deemed unfit to proceed, the case was placed back on track for a jury trial in June following his stint with the state Department of Public Health and Human Services.

On Oct. 5, Eddy sentenced Tommy to the county jail for 365 days with 58 days suspended. She also gave him credit for 302 days of time served. Eddy instructed Tommy to continue taking his medication and keep his appointments with his doctors.


News Editor Derrick Perkins can be reached at 758-4430 or [email protected].




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