A former Whitefish resident who was acquitted of murder in Flathead District Court in 1999 is serving one year of jail time in Alaska for another crime.

Showen jailed in Alaska

Christopher Showen, 24, was acquitted of the murder of another Whitefish area resident, C.J. Storkson, 18. Showen was 19 at the time he was accused of shooting Storkson in the head with a handgun. Whitefish attorney Phyllis Quatman represented Showen. Several local teens were involved in the incident that ended in a jury acquittal.

Showen ran into trouble with the law in Alaska after he allegedly fired several rounds from a semi-automatic handgun towards a woman at a party at a gravel pit.

According to an affidavit from the Alaska state trooper who responded to the call on May 9 at 2:40 a.m., Showen fired the shots after he had an argument with a woman at the outdoor party.

According to trooper Jack Ransom, Showen fired several rounds at the woman from a range of 25 yards from a vehicle that was spinning its tires and moving at a high rate of speed. Showen was not driving the vehicle. No one was hurt, but there was a crowd standing nearby a campfire when Showen started shooting the gun.

Law-enforcement authorities discovered Showen later that night in a bar in Wasilla, Alaska. A semi-automatic handgun kept in his waist band was recovered at the bar. Breathalizer tests recorded an alcohol level of .168.

Showen denied knowledge of the incident, but later pleaded no contest to charges of reckless endangerment, a misdemeanor.

Initially Showen was also charged with first-degree misconduct involving weapons, assault in the third degree and fifth degree of misconduct involving weapons. These charges were dropped.

—Christine Hensleigh