Case dropped against man accused of threatening police

A septuagenarian arrested for allegedly threatening Kalispell Police officers attempting to dislodge him from his campsite along the Parkline Trail in 2022 saw his felony case dismissed in April.

Prosecutors charged Douglas Seward Russell, 72, who does not have an address listed with the court, with felony intimidation following his June 30, 2022 arrest. Arraigned in Flathead County District Court nearly six months later, Russell pleaded not guilty to the felony charge.

Russell allegedly cited the Castle Doctrine when officers approached him about his camp site near the multi-use trail and began using “threatening language,” according to court documents. While officers could see a knife on him, Russell also allegedly said he would keep a gun ready in case anyone disturbed his camp.

At the time, Russell also faced a charge related to his alleged interactions with the Kalispell City Attorney’s Office, court documents said.

Subsequently held in the Flathead County Detention Center, Russell’s mental health began to worsen, according to documents filed in district court. By mid-July, his public defender had begun the process of seeking a mental health evaluation. Ultimately, authorities took Russell to the Montana State Hospital on July 25 as part of an unrelated involuntary commitment process, court documents said.

Russell returned to Flathead County in early August without having received an evaluation on his fitness to proceed. It was not until Sept. 28 that he departed the county jail for Warm Springs and the evaluation. He was deemed fit to proceed in late November and his arraignment held in December.

On April 19, defense attorney Greg Rapkoch filed a motion to dismiss for lack of a speedy trial. In it, Rapkoch detailed the delays that plagued Russell’s case as it worked through district court and argued that the 72-year-old never waived his right to a speedy trial.

“[Russell] is a 72-year-old man who is being held in jail; [he] has recently expressed a fear that he might die in custody before this matter is resolved,” Rapkoch wrote. “The physical toll alone is substantial on a person of this age. But that physical toll is exponentially worsened when [his] mental health needs — although not necessarily raising to the level of unfitness — are seemingly undisputed by the state and real.”

Prosecutors filed a motion to see the case dismissed with prejudice on April 20. Judge Dan Wilson acquiesced that same day.

News Editor Derrick Perkins can be reached at 758-4430 or dperkins@dailyinterlake.com.