Man pleads not guilty to assaulting police chief
<p><strong>Caleb Kellen Buzzell, 25</strong></p>
A Columbia Falls man pleaded not guilty Thursday to a felony charge of assault on a peace officer for allegedly punching Whitefish Police Chief Bill Dial in the face on Halloween.
Caleb Kellen Buzzell, 25, entered the plea in Flathead County District Court.
According to court documents, Whitefish Police received a report of an intoxicated man downtown on Halloween night.
The man, later identified as Buzzell, at one point had dropped his cellphone on Spokane Avenue and stumbled into the roadway and was almost struck by a car, prompting the driver to call 911.
Dial attempted to get Buzzell’s identification information, but Buzzell allegedly became belligerent and confrontational, ultimately punching Dial in the face.
“He caught me off my guard,” Dial said. “It was like a basketball coming at you and you don’t have time to react.”
The police chief suffered two black eyes and a broken nose.
A few people nearby saw the incident and ran over to help, Dial said. They held Buzzell down as a second officer arrived.
Assault on a peace officer carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $50,000 fine.
If convicted, Buzzell would face revocation of his deferred sentencing in May on a pair of other offenses.
Buzzell was given a deferred six-year sentence after he pleaded guilty to assaulting a sheriff’s deputy and criminal possession of drugs.