GPS claims won't fly with judge

Flathead District Judge David Ortley refused Thursday to lower bail and release Justin Westermeyer, 28, of Kalispell as he awaits trial for allegedly stabbing a man in February.

Westermeyer was released on $60,000 property bond in June, on the condition that he pay $400 per month for Global Positioning System monitoring that would constantly keep track of his location.

He was to keep out of victim safety zones that were established to protect witnesses and others involved in a Feb. 3 incident where Westermeyer allegedly stabbed a man five times in the back.  

In the course of 66 days when he was being monitored between June 23 and Aug. 29, Westermeyer’s GPS unit died more than 14 times for amounts of time that spanned less than a half-hour to an entire day. The total time Westermeyer was unmonitored amounted to five days.

Ortley did not believe Westermeyer’s claims that he tried to keep the battery charged.

“I can tell you without reservation that I have never seen this number of violations so I can’t just look the other way,” Ortley said. “This is not a coincidence. I do not for a minute believe this is anything else other than you working the system.”

Westermeyer’s attorney Timothy Wenz asked that Westermeyer be released on his own recognizance and the GPS monitoring requirement be removed.

Ortley would not grant the request.

“I am concerned about the safety of the community and persons in this case,”  Ortley said.

Ortley said he did believe Westermeyer would show up for court if released, though prosecutor John Donovan disagreed. Donovan pointed out that Westermeyer was picked up by federal authorities on May 23 in Washington as he was coming back from a job in Alaska.

Westermeyer originally told police officers that he stabbed the victim in self-defense, so he was released from jail soon after the stabbing. A warrant for his arrest was issued later.

“I think he is a flight risk,” Donovan said.

Westermeyer said he didn’t know about the warrant at the time he left for Alaska.

“I was very blatant about it,” Westermeyer said. “I had pictures of me in Dutch Harbor on my Facebook page. I was not running.”

Westermeyer’s defense and prosecutors also went back and forth about whether or not he had violated a condition of his release by working in a local machine shop that produces gun barrels. As part of release, Westermeyer is not allowed to be in possession of firearms or other weapons.

“It’s not a weapon,” Westermeyer said. “It’s just a barrel.”

Ortley did not weigh in on that issue.

An omnibus hearing is Sept. 23. Westermeyer could face up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

Reporter Megan Strickland may be reached at 758-4459 or by email at mstrickland@dailyinterlake.com.