BONNERS FERRY — A Boundary County man initially charged with seven counts related to rape and aggravated assault has pleaded guilty to two felony assault charges. 

Michael Lange, 53, entered Alford pleas to two counts of assault with intent to commit a serious felony after threatening to rape two people and holding a gun to one victim’s head while making the threats, according to court documents. 

Under an Alford plea, a defendant maintains innocence while acknowledging prosecutors likely have enough evidence to secure a conviction at trial. The plea is treated the same as a standard guilty plea at sentencing. 

Each charge carries a sentence of up to 15 years in prison. 

Boundary County Prosecuting Attorney Andrakay Pluid said there are no sentencing agreements in the case, meaning the state is free to recommend the maximum penalty. 

“These are both felonies which require sex offender registration and carry up to 15 years in prison each,” Pluid said. 

Court documents initially alleged Lange threatened the victims with a firearm multiple times between November 2021 and May 2025. The documents also alleged Lange raped both victims during that period. 

A criminal complaint was filed Sept. 19, 2025. A previously scheduled trial was vacated March 23, 2026. 

Pluid said the impact on victims was a significant factor in the plea agreement. 

“One of the considerations has to be accountability by the offender coupled with weighing the impact on the victims from going through the trial process,” Pluid said in a written statement. “The state was prepared to proceed to trial on this case and I believe we could have secured convictions, but saving the victims the very public aspects of a trial including community scrutiny and re-traumatization by the trial process as a whole led me to offer the 2 counts of assault with intent to commit rape.” 

At the same hearing, Lange also pleaded guilty through an Alford plea to one count of unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. 

He was initially charged with two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, one count of possession of a controlled substance and one count of possession of drug paraphernalia with intent to use before accepting a plea agreement.