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Sheriff's board finds no violation in Oct. 10 shooting by deputy

by Hungry Horse News
| November 12, 2013 9:07 AM

The Flathead County Sheriff’s Office review board that looked into the Oct. 10 shooting of a Columbia Falls area woman by a SWAT team member reported last week that no policy violation had occurred.

Michelle Gentry, 54, was shot several times at her residence on Eastland Crossroads, at the south end of Columbia Falls Stage Road. The shooting took place after Flathead County deputies responded around 2 a.m. to a report of an armed and suicidal woman.

The county’s SWAT team was called in after negotiators were unable to get Gentry to come out of her home. Deputy Caleb Pleasants fired at Gentry several times, striking her twice, after she approached the SWAT team holding a gun in her hand.

She was taken to Kalispell Regional Medical Center in critical condition but is recovering.

The Kalispell Police Department conducted a full investigation into the shooting and provided its findings to the Flathead County Attorney’s Office and the sheriff’s review board prior to the board’s ruling.

“After careful review of the information made available to us, we find no deviation from or failure to comply with the policies and procedures of the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office,” the sheriff’s review board concluded. “It is further our recommendation that Deputy Caleb Pleasants be returned to full duty at the earliest convenience without restriction or prejudice.”

Based on that recommendation, Flathead County Sheriff Chuck Curry returned Pleasants to duty. A six-year sheriff’s office veteran, Pleasants was on paid administrative leave following the incident.

The Kalispell Police Department’s report is being kept secret by law enforcement, and Flathead County Attorney Ed Corrigan said any decision to release the report or whether to charge Gentry will be made after she has been released from the hospital.

“We intend to (release the report) eventually, but there’s some privacy steps and some procedural steps we have to take before we do so — just privacy concerns that have to be honored on her behalf,” Corrigan said.