Man pleads innocent to knife incident in bar

The Daily Inter Lake

A Kalispell man has pleaded innocent to brandishing a knife during a disturbance last month in a south Kalispell bar

During his arraignment Thursday in Flathead County District Court, Jonathan Kirk Francis, 26, pleaded not guilty to felony assault with a weapon, misdemeanor disorderly conduct, and misdemeanor resisting arrest.

Prosecutors allege Francis, who was armed with a knife, screamed vulgarities and threatened to harm a bartender at the Bulldog Steak House on U.S. 93 South when she refused to serve him alcohol.

Francis also allegedly brandished the knife at a man who refused to let him back into the bar, according to court documents.

Francis, who resisted arrest, according to Kalispell police reports, was taken into custody after the March 22 incident.

A conviction for assault with a weapon carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $50,000 fine. Francis' trial is scheduled for the June jury term.