Trial for former hockey coach accused of sexually assaulting boys starts in Butte

A former youth hockey coach accused of sexually assaulting young boys in Butte and Flathead County went on trial Monday, 30 months after he was arrested on initial allegations in the case.

But jury selection in the case of Jami Leslie James took all day so opening arguments and testimony were to start Tuesday morning. A jury of six women and six men will hear the case. 

Prosecutors say six alleged rapes occurred between 2019 and early 2021 and involved three boys, all 8 or 9 years old at the time, who were participants in a private hockey program run by James.

James, now 50, is charged with six counts of sexual intercourse without consent, a felony charge in Montana that usually involves alleged penetration by an object or body part.

James pleaded not guilty in April 2023 to two counts filed in Butte-Silver Bow County, five days after he pleaded not guilty in Kalispell to four rape charges in Flathead County. Each count carries a maximum sentence of 100 years in prison.

James told police he never sexually abused children and could not think of a motive behind the accusations. But he has said he is biracial and told a detective after his arrest that he feels he is constantly attacked due to his race.

The boys described the sexual assaults to investigators and forensic interviews were conducted.

James has been jailed in Flathead or Butte-Silver Bow counties since his arrest in February 2023. The allegations were consolidated into one case in May 2024, and District Judge Robert Whelan is presiding over the trial in Butte.

Attorneys for the Montana Attorney General’s Office — Kelli Fivey and Stephanie Robles — are prosecuting the case. Kalispell attorneys Scott Hilderman and Lane Bennett are representing James.

The charges in Flathead County stem from alleged sexual assaults of two boys at James’ Columbia Falls home and during a camping trip at Hungry Horse Reservoir in 2020.

Prosecutors in Butte-Silver Bow say one of those victims was also assaulted by James at a Butte hotel.

A third boy saw a newspaper article and photo about James’ arrest in early February 2023 and told his parents two days later, “I think JJ did that to me.” Authorities believe it occurred at a different hotel in Butte, leading to the second charge there.

More than 100 people were called as prospective jurors in the case and attorneys screened many of them individually in private Monday morning to narrow the pool.

But lawyers questioned prospective jurors — this time in public at the Maroon Activities Center — all afternoon Monday.

Fivey told the group that the state had the burden of proving the allegations beyond a reasonable doubt and should be held to that burden.

Lane Bennett, a defense attorney, said the allegations "made a pretty big media splash" in Butte and Kalispell but said news reports have only told one side of the story.

Several potential jurors said they had read or heard news accounts about the allegations and some were ultimately dismissed.

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