Kalispell man pleads not guilty to trailer arson

A Kalispell man arrested after allegedly setting a trailer on fire has pleaded not guilty to a trio of charges.

Daniel English, 40, entered the pleas Thursday in Flathead District Court to a felony charge of arson and misdemeanor charges of resisting arrest and obstructing a peace officer.

A court document alleges deputies went to the 1584 Trumble Creek Road home on Aug. 27 to arrest English on a pair of felony warrants. Flathead County Sheriff Chuck Curry later said those warrants were out of Lewis and Clark County for $35,000 and out of Broadwater County for $10,000.

Deputies approached both the front and back doors of the home, at which point the deputy in the back reportedly saw English enter through the back door with a gasoline can. When deputies ordered English to leave the home, he allegedly yelled obscenities and threatened to burn down the trailer.

A deputy said he then watched English pour gasoline throughout the trailer and say he would “light it” before flames started shooting through the home.

The court document claims English then ran out of the trailer but refused to comply with law enforcement, at which point he was apprehended with the use of a Taser.

The document added, “The use of gasoline placed both [the neighbor] and the firefighters at great risk of harm from the fire and possible explosion.”

Firefighters rescued a dog from inside the burning trailer, although two kittens died in the fire. The interior of the trailer was gutted by the fire.

English is currently incarcerated in the Flathead County Detention Center, where his bond was originally set at $35,000 before being increased to $50,000.

If convicted of all three charges, English faces up to one year in the county jail, up to 20 years in the Montana State Prison, and a fine of up to $51,000.

His next hearing is set for Oct. 16.

Reporter Jesse Davis may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at jdavis@dailyinterlake.com.