Whitefish man given suspended jail sentence for ramming parked truck

A Whitefish man accused of ramming another vehicle in the parking lot of a Kalispell big box store in 2024 later received a suspended jail sentence.  

Prosecutors initially charged Johnathan Troy Howard, 51, with felony criminal endangerment in Flathead County District Court following his March 5, 2024 arrest. Howard pleaded not guilty before Judge Heidi Ulbricht later that month.  

But he took a deal with prosecutors in April 2025 that saw him enter a guilty plea to an amended charge of misdemeanor criminal mischief. In exchange, prosecutors recommended he receive a suspended six-month jail sentence and pay $3,000 in restitution.  

Ulbricht stuck to the terms at Howard's April 11 sentencing and gave him credit for three days of time served.  

Prior to his arrest, Howard repeatedly rammed a parked Toyota Tacoma with his 2004 Ford F-150, court documents said. A repair shop later put the damage to the Tacoma at more than $8,000, according to court documents. 

Kalispell Police officers arrested Howard after being summoned to the parking lot for reports of a fistfight breaking out after the collisions. 

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