Flathead County Library grapples with security after alleged attack on employees

A woman who allegedly bit and punched two library workers in Kalispell in early July is in the Flathead County Detention Center awaiting trial.

The alleged attack occurred on July 2 after a Flathead County Library worker at the Kalispell branch asked 54-year-old Bobbie Rae Nielsen if she needed assistance shortly after opening for the day, according to Kalispell Police Chief Jordan Venezio. He said Nielsen began making a scene, tearing things off the walls and then attacked the library worker.  

Venezio said Nielsen punched one worker and then bit another who was trying to fend her off. A staff report from Flathead County Library Public Services Librarian Tony Edmundson said a patron stepped in to help with Nielsen, who was held down until police officers arrived. Venezio said the call came in at 10:11 a.m. and officers were on the scene about three minutes later.  

The incident occurred before the branch’s security guard was scheduled to be on duty. 

Nielsen was charged with misdemeanor assault, criminal mischief, obstructing a peace officer or public servant and resisting arrest. She was booked into the county jail with bail set at $2,000 and is expected to appear in court Sept. 3.  

In his staff report, Edmundson wrote that the alleged attack was one of the library system’s “worst fears realized." Library officials have seen an increase in incidents over the last couple of years, culminating with the system contracting with Alert Security last year. Under the agreement, security guards were present in branches for 35 hours a week, typically during periods of increased activity.  

Following the attack, staff petitioned the Flathead County Library Board of Trustees to increase security coverage to 40 hours a week. Edmundson went further, asking that coverage expand to about 50 hours a week.  

He said he believes the outcome of the alleged July 2 attack would have gone differently if a security guard was present. 

Following the incident, Library Director Teri Dugan said that two managers were put on each shift, and that they were encouraged to improve communications.  

Library officials are also looking at places to add security cameras and have changed Wi-Fi hours to discourage loitering, she said. 

“It’s not on at all on Sundays — we thought that would help deter traffic,” Dugan said. “We've had a lot of trespassed persons hanging around the library on the weekends when we're not open using the Wi-Fi. We will drive by and see them. And there’s lots of garbage in the morning to pick up when we’re coming in.” 

TRUSTEES APPROVED the extra security measures at Thursday’s board meeting. They also discussed contracting security guards to be on-site during all hours the branches are open. 

Chair David Ingram said having a full-time onsite security guard would cost the library an additional $18,000 annually, totaling $90,000 a year. With the security guards’ current hours, the library system has committed to spending about $73,000 a year.  

Hesitant to increase spending yet again, trustees asked Dugan to report back next month on how the recently implemented security measures are working out. Additionally, they asked if she could put together a comprehensive list of costs associated with training and other security measures staff would like to implement.  

Trustee Heidi Roedel suggested reducing operating hours by opening at 11 a.m. instead of 10 a.m. The idea initially had the support of Vice Chair Carmen Cuthbertson, but Dugan noted that change in hours would have a ripple effect on staff hours and programming. 

“Please don’t shorten the library hours, they are already too short. During Covid-19, we lost hours and we never got them back. We don't want to diminish this institution anymore,” Gary Stevens said during public comment. He suggested installing panic buttons. 

Dugan said adding a panic button is something officials can investigate. However, the Kalispell Police Department is located almost right across the road from the Kalispell branch, so response times to incidents at the library are already fast.  

Another sentiment expressed during public comment was the need to be “proactive, rather than reactive” from ImagineIF Foundation Executive Director Sara Busse, who said she was speaking as an individual and not on behalf of the nonprofit. She said reactions to disturbances downtown, which have been largely attributed to an increase in the area’s homeless population, are a community wide issue.  

“What I'm not hearing, and it's not just here, but across the community, are proactive steps to address what it looks like to provide folks who need a safe place to be who are homeless or unhoused who are struggling with mental illness — all of these things ... What role could the library have in that greater conversation in our community?” Busse said.  

Cuthbertson said that while creative ideas are welcome, she doesn’t want to see the library become a place where workers will be expected to encounter these situations often. 

“I would also say the pot of money we have is not unlimited, the pot of money the county has is not unlimited, every dollar more that we spend comes out of the taxpayer's pocket. And I feel like we can either be a really great library or we can become a welfare institution,” Cuthbertson said.  

She later clarified that she’s supportive of staff seeking self-defense training — if interested — and is open to directing people in crisis to resources.  

Trustee Jane Wheeler suggested asking the county for a sidebar request to cover the remaining funds needed to pay for full-time security. Ingram said safety will be discussed at their next staff day, where they will talk with library workers to hear their concerns and ideas.  

Reporter Taylor Inman can be reached at 406-758-4433 or by emailing tinman@dailyinterlake.com.