Woman pleads innocent

Cates charged with misdemeanor in connection with septic-tank death of boy, 3

The Daily Inter Lake

Tommie Cates pleaded not guilty Wednesday to a charge of negligent endangerment.

She was supposed to answer to the misdemeanor charge by Monday, which was an extension from her Flathead County Justice Court appearance originally scheduled for Feb. 21.

She missed that rescheduled deadline, but avoided potential consequences by entering a plea Wednesday.

The charge was filed after the sheriff's investigation and the county attorney's review of the drowning death of 3-year-old Loic Rogers in January at her Evergreen home.

Justice court meets Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, so Wednesday was the first available day for her to enter a plea after the missed Feb. 26 appearance.

Her attorney, Gary Doran of Kalispell, spoke Wednesday on behalf of Cates, declining in-depth comment on the case.

"There are District Court rules and I generally follow those in Justice Court, too, regarding statements to the press concerning any cases that are active in the courts," Doran said.

He said he would not have further comment for now, "other than she has relied on her right to plead not guilty."

He added, however, that Cates is a renter in her home, 546 Maple Drive, and the property is titled in another party's name.

A search of Flathead County tax records indicates that property taxes for the home in Mountain View Subdivision are registered to two other owners - Rinke's Red Hawk Ranch and JB Estates LLC. The mailing address is a post office box in Kalispell.

Cates had hosted Mark Rogers and his three children, including Loic, in her home early in the evening of Jan. 24. As Rogers was getting his children in the family van to leave, Loic disappeared.

An intensive all-night and two-day search followed, until the toddler was found drowned in the septic tank at Cates' home the night of Jan. 26.

The riser on the septic tank had been damaged about a month earlier, making it impossible to bolt the lid in place.

County Attorney Ed Corrigan said Cates had made an attempt to fix it, but it apparently was not secured that night. The child slipped in, and the lid apparently fell back in place over the top of the riser.

He emphasized that Loic's death was not a homicide, and that the misdemeanor charge of negligent endangerment was appropriate in the matter.

Corrigan added that Cates cooperated fully throughout the Sheriff's Office investigation and review by the County Attorney's Office.