C-Falls motorist given 10 years in state prison with five suspended
Kenneth Malcolm Stevenson at his Sept. 8, 2022, arraignment in Flathead County District Court. Stevenson faces a felony charge of negligent vehicular assault after allegedly hitting a group of cyclists in Kalispell while driving drunk. (Derrick Perkins/Daily Inter Lake)
A Columbia Falls motorist convicted of a felony charge stemming from a drunken collision with a group of cyclists in Kalispell last summer has earned five years of prison time.
Judge Dan Wilson sentenced Kenneth Malcolm Stevenson, 35, to 10 years in Montana State Prison with five years suspended in Flathead County District Court on Aug. 17. Wilson gave Stevenson credit for two days of time served and ordered him to pay restitution as well as court fines and fees.
Stevenson initially pleaded not guilty to a single count of negligent vehicular assault following the Aug. 21, 2022 collision along Seventh Avenue East North in Kalispell. He struck a plea deal with prosecutors in May of this year. In exchange for a guilty plea, prosecutors agreed to recommend a partially suspended sentence with the state Department of Corrections.
Wilson last week gave Stevenson prison time instead.
The wreck occurred while Stevenson allegedly tried to pass the group of cyclists. Instead, he seriously injured one cyclist before striking a Jeep with his Ford F-350 pickup truck, court documents said.
When Kalispell Police officers arrived, they reported finding Stevenson boasting slurred speech and the odor of an alcoholic beverage as well as water, bloodshot eyes, court documents said. Stevenson, who was driving shoeless, allegedly needed the help of officers to stay upright.
He also admitted to drinking at an area bar earlier in the evening, according to court documents.
News Editor Derrick Perkins can be reached at 758-4430 or dperkins@dailyinterlake.com.