Man shot by police charged with assault

The man who was shot in his home by Kalispell police last month faces a felony assault charge.

Flathead County Deputy Attorney Stacy Boman filed charging documents Thursday against Ryan Pengelly, 30, for assault on a peace officer.

According to the charging affidavit, Pengelly raised a rifle Jan. 12 at two Kalispell police officers while they were trying to take Pengelly’s mother, Bonnie, into custody for mental-health issues.

During the struggle to detain Bonnie Pengelly, her son emerged from a room in the back of the Looking Glass Avenue house with a loaded rifle and raised it toward the officers, according to the affidavit. The officers told Ryan Pengelly to drop his weapon; when he refused, they fired six shots, hitting him with four rounds.

A Flathead County Sheriff’s Office investigation cleared the two officers — Sgt. Chad Zimmerman and Officer Eric Brinton — and concluded that the shooting was justified.

“He [Pengelly] admitted that he pointed the rifle directly at one of the officers,” the Sheriff’s Office report stated. “When asked if the officer said anything to him, Ryan responded, ‘...He said put the rifle down, but he didn’t give me enough time to do so.’ Ryan also stated, ‘That’s probably what I did wrong, I pointed the rifle at him; it was wrong. If I would have known it was a police officer I would have put it down immediately.’”

If convicted, Ryan Pengelly could be sentenced to prison for up to 10 years and could be fined up to $50,000.

Pengelly is a decorated Army veteran who served two tours in Afghanistan and one tour in Iraq before he sustained a traumatic brain injury in a bomb blast. The home where the shooting occurred was built in 2012-13 by Operation FinallyHome, a nonprofit that provides wounded soldiers and their widows with American-made, mortgage-free homes.

Reporter Seaborn Larson may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at slarson@dailyinterlake.com.