Man suspected of indecent exposure faces revocation of sentence

Prosecutors are seeking to revoke the suspended prison sentence of a Kalispell man accused of exposing his genitals at the Kidsport Complex in late April.

David Scott Whitford, 26, entered general denials to the allegations during an appearance before Judge Robert Allison in Flathead County District Court on June 22. He is serving a 10-year suspended sentence on a 2020 felony criminal endangerment conviction.

Allison set an adjudicatory hearing for Aug. 3. Whitford is being held in the county jail with bail set at $200,000.

The Kalispell Police Department identified Whitford in early May as the man investigators believe exposed his genitals at the athletic fields near U.S. 93 about 6:30 p.m., April 29. He allegedly fled the sports complex on a bicycle.

Witnesses told investigators that the man had hung around the youth fields much of the day leading up to the incident.

Authorities announced his arrest on May 4.

According to a violation report filed in district court along with the petition to revoke, Whitford’s probation and parole officer deemed him a threat to the community.

“The conduct of Mr. Whitford has continued to place the youth of this community at risk and it is my opinion the only appropriate placement for him is the prison,” the report reads.

Whitford’s 2022 conviction on criminal endangerment began with a sexual intercourse without consent charge, according to court documents. Prosecutors amended the charge after he agreed to a plea deal, court documents said.

He initially earned a three-year deferred sentence for the felony, but prosecutors sought to revoke it in 2021. Whitford had by that time emerged as the focus of a rape investigation by authorities in Missoula, according to court documents.

A violation report filed in that case indicated that Whitford admitted to Kalispell Police detectives that he had sex with a 16-year-old. In 2022, he acknowledged violating the conditions of his deferred sentence in Flathead County District Court and earned the suspended 10-year sentence in Montana State Prison.

Describing Whitford’s behavior in the lead up to the alleged April 2023 incident in Kalispell, his probation and parole officer noted that the 26-year-old had disclosed drinking alcohol, viewing pornography, sending text messages to a 16-year-old girl and firing a gun, according to the violation report. Whitford also has failed to fully enter a sex offender treatment program, the report reads.

Whitford has since been suspended from participating in the program based on the allegations, according to the report.

The probation and parole report recommends “Whitford be committed to the Montana State Prison for a period of 10 years, no time suspended. The reason for this recommendation is due to the seriousness of the above violations.”

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

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