Suspect in attempted knife attack sentenced

A 30-year-old arrested after allegedly chasing a man around a Flathead Valley apartment building with a knife last year earned a partially suspended sentence to county jail in October. 

Prosecutors initially charged Raymond Carl Tommy with felony assault with a weapon following his Dec. 7, 2022 arrest at a Montana 35 building. They amended the charge to misdemeanor negligent endangerment Sept. 14 after Tommy took a plea deal, according to court records. 

Tommy came to the attention of Flathead County Sheriff’s Office deputies after the apartment building’s manager phoned authorities, telling them they had seen one man chase another around the property with a knife, court documents said. The manager allegedly identified Tommy as the man wielding the knife. 

Deputies found an apparently unarmed Tommy, clad only in underwear, pacing around the manager’s office, according to court documents. They arrested him after he refused to comply with their instructions, court documents said. 

The manager later turned Tommy’s alleged weapon over to investigators, telling them they had surveillance footage of him trying to hide the blade, court documents said. 

Judge Amy Eddy, who presided over the case, ordered Tommy to undergo a fitness evaluation in January at the behest of his defense attorneys. After Tommy initially was deemed unfit to proceed, the case was placed back on track for a jury trial in June following his stint with the state Department of Public Health and Human Services.

On Oct. 5, Eddy sentenced Tommy to the county jail for 365 days with 58 days suspended. She also gave him credit for 302 days of time served. Eddy instructed Tommy to continue taking his medication and keep his appointments with his doctors.

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