Man accused of threatening school shooting given deferred prosecution agreement

A 36-year-old accused of threatening to shoot up a school in text messages last spring saw the charges filed against him dismissed after inking a deferred prosecution agreement.

Robert Arnold Brown faced one count of felony intimidation and a misdemeanor charge of assault with a bodily fluid following his May 8 arrest in Columbia Falls. Prior to his arrest, Brown allegedly had issued threats with his phone, including one making reference to an upcoming school shooting, court documents said.

“I am about to shoot up a [expletive] school are you hearing me …” read one of the messages, according to court documents.

A relative alerted the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office to the texts and told them where Brown worked and what type of vehicle he drove, court documents said.

After his arrest, Brown allegedly spat in the face of a detention officer at the county jail.

Brown pleaded not guilty to the charges at his May 15 arraignment.

In August, he reached a deferred prosecution agreement with the County Attorney’s Office. In exchange for two years of good behavior, prosecutors will forgo pursuing the charges. Brown also agreed to undergo a mental health evaluation and continue to receive mental health treatment during that two-year period.

Prosecutors filed a motion to dismiss the charges, citing the deferred prosecution agreement, on Aug. 8. Judge Danni Coffman ordered the case dismissed the following day.

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