Sexual assault suspect pleads innocent

A convicted sex offender pleaded innocent Wednesday to charges alleging he sexually assaulted a 5-year-old Kalispell boy.

Jason Dean Franks, 41, was arrested in Missoula Nov. 30 for failing to register as a sex offender.

Later that same day, the Flathead County Attorney’s Office charged him with sexual assault and sexual intercourse without consent.

He was extradited from Missoula to Kalispell Dec. 3 and remains in the Flathead County Detention Center.

A Kalispell Police Department investigation determined Franks sexually abused the boy when he lived with the boy’s mother from 2009 to 2010.

The assaults allegedly occurred when the boy’s mother was at work and once in a public restroom, according to court documents.

The maximum penalty for sexual assault is 100 years in prison and a $50,000 fine. Felony sexual intercourse without consent also carries a maximum penalty of 100 years in prison.

Franks’ bail has been set at $100,000.

He has been required to register as a sex offender since he was convicted of sexual assault in 1993.