Polson city worker fired, later arrested

POLSON — Lake County sheriff’s deputies arrested former city building inspector Ronald Phillip Melvin at his home in Polson Tuesday on felony charges of threats and improper influence in official or political matters.

Melvin made his initial appearance in Lake County Justice Court on Wednesday. The judge reduced bond from $50,000 to $5,000 and ordered Melvin to wear a GPS and alcohol monitoring bracelet if freed on bail. He is also forbidden to go within 500 feet of Polson City Hall or the homes of the alleged victims.

The city of Polson terminated Melvin’s employment on Monday. At about 11:30 a.m. the following day, Melvin allegedly left a message on a city phone threatening to kill city manager Todd Crossett unless he resigned by the end of the week. According to the affidavit, he also threatened to kill city attorney James Raymond and another city employee.

“I thought they were in a definite threatening manner toward specific individuals,” Polson Police Chief Wade Nash said of the threats. “I met with the city manager and expressed my concern for his safety and the safety of other employees. Then, I spoke with the sheriff’s office to alleviate the conflict of interest and filed for a search warrant.”

Earlier this month, Melvin entered a guilty plea to amended charges of a second offense DUI in Jefferson County Justice Court on May 1 after pleading not guilty to a third offense DUI on April 5.