Teen pleads guilty

Qwik Stop in Kalispell was robbed Dec. 28

The Daily Inter Lake

The man accused of robbing the Woodland Qwik Stop in Kalispell on Dec. 28 pleaded guilty Thursday.

Jamahl E. Michael initially entered a not-guilty plea, but bypassed the trial phase by changing his plea before District Judge Stewart Stadler.

He also has pleaded guilty to felony criminal endangerment from a June 21 assault on a police officer.

A plea agreement has been filed with the court, recommending a 15-year jail sentence in the correctional system, with 10 suspended. During that time, he is to pursue treatment for his alcohol and chemical dependency.

In testimony Thursday, Michael, who was 18 at the time of the robbery, admitted to entering the convenience store at about 11 p.m., wearing a ski mask and asking the clerk to open the cash register and give him the money.

When she responded, "Are you kidding me? You're not robbing me, are you?" he pointed to his waistband and she saw a knife, defense attorney Gary Doran said in court.

She handed over the cash, and Michael left, prompting an intensive search that ended with officers finding him at his Many Lakes home. A second suspect implicated in the robbery, who was driving a red 1995 Ford Explorer, was not found.

In the June incident, Michael admitted he was in a vehicle in a parking lot that night when he was approached by two police officers on bicycles. Michael, a minor at the time, admitted to the officers that he had been drinking but refused to step out of the vehicle when asked. Instead, he opened his vehicle door and backed up toward the officer.

Lori Adams, deputy county attorney, noted that she and Michael had known each other for some time, and added they both agreed that "it's time to get your drug addiction under control."

He admitted to her assertion that he was under the influence of drugs the night of the robbery.

"And even though you were polite," Adams said, "you told the clerk you needed to feed your family, when you really needed to feed your drug habit. You lied to the clerk."

Michael agreed that was the case.

Stadler requested a pre-sentence investigation, urging Michael to participate in and cooperate with the investigation.

He could face as long as 50 years in prison if the maximum penalties are imposed.