Accused drug smuggler sees felony case dismissed

A 23-year-old accused of smuggling fentanyl into the Flathead County Detention Center last year saw the felony charge filed against her dismissed in January.

Prosecutors brought Melanie Lee Hickok of Kalispell up on a drug distribution charge after two overdoses inside the county jail shortly after she entered the facility in November, according to court documents. She pleaded not guilty at her Dec. 14 arraignment in Flathead County District Court. 

Authorities questioned Hickok, who was booked into the county jail on an outstanding warrant in a 2021 drug possession case, shortly after the overdoses, court documents said. Pressed, she allegedly admitted to smuggling in fentanyl.