Woman accused of hiding jeans in a purse

A 38-year-old former Columbia Falls woman was given two suspended sentences after she was accused of stealing a pair of jeans from the Buckle store in Kalispell.

Flathead County District Court Judge Robert Allison sentenced Brandy Cheyenne Mattingly on Oct. 2 to one year in the county jail, all suspended, for a misdemeanor count of negligent endangerment and six months in the county jail, all suspended, for a misdemeanor count of theft.

Mattingly pleaded guilty by Alford plea, meaning she maintains her innocence while acknowledging the overwhelming evidence against her. Her initial charge of felony robbery was amended to two misdemeanors. Allison also ordered her to pay $620 iin fines and fees.

According to court records, Mattingly allegedly was caught leaving the Buckle store on April 28 with a pair of jeans hidden in her purse.

When the store alarm sounded, a store employee asked to look inside the purse.

Mattingly allegedly became confrontational, shoved the store employee out of the way and elbowed the employee in the face as she ran out of the Kalispell Center Mall building.

The employee later said her jaw hurt and she had a headache from the injury. A responding officer located the two teenage girls who had been shopping in the Buckle store with Mattingly, and one of them told the officer Mattingly’s name.

After turning herself in at the Kalispell Police Station, Mattingly allegedly admitted stealing the jeans, refusing to stop when asked and running from the mall. She posted a $30,000 bond shortly after being arrested.