Hello and welcome to News Now, I’m your host Taylor Inman. We’re going over the week’s biggest headlines and what’s coming up for northwest Montana.

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A Kalispell woman brought up on felony charges after a confrontation over an allegedly abducted dog in 2023 received a pair of suspended sentences in Flathead County District Court earlier this year.

38-year-old Ashley Nicole Smith faced counts of criminal mischief and criminal possession of dangerous drugs after allegedly ramming her ex-boyfriend's vehicle and threatening him with a gun in Kalispell on Sept. 23, 2023.

She …

Hello and welcome to News Now, I’m your host Taylor Inman. We’re going over the week’s biggest headlines and what’s coming up for northwest Montana.

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A Kalispell woman brought up on felony charges after a confrontation over an allegedly abducted dog in 2023 received a pair of suspended sentences in Flathead County District Court earlier this year.

38-year-old Ashley Nicole Smith faced counts of criminal mischief and criminal possession of dangerous drugs after allegedly ramming her ex-boyfriend's vehicle and threatening him with a gun in Kalispell on Sept. 23, 2023.

She pleaded guilty to both in Flathead County District Court in January after striking a deal with prosecutors.

In exchange, prosecutors agreed to recommended she serve a pair of five-year suspended sentences with the state Department of Corrections. Judge Dan Wilson, who presided over the case, stuck to the terms of the deal at Smith's March 14 sentencing.

Wilson ordered that the two sentences run concurrently, and that Smith receive 109 days of credit for time served.

Kalispell Police officers arrested Smith after responding to a report of a motor vehicle accident on the 500 block of Ninth Avenue West that had turned into an armed confrontation, according to court documents. Smith allegedly rammed the victim's car, causing an estimated $1,500 in damage, before threatening him with a gun.

The confrontation stemmed from the alleged abduction of a dog. The victim told authorities that Smith had previously taken the dog of a mutual friend, who was in the hospital, to a Lore Lake Road house. According to court documents, that resident had phoned the victim earlier in the morning, saying a woman had come by the house and stole away with the animal.

Suspecting Smith, the victim drove to her home on Kalispell's west end and spotted her in her Dodge pickup with the missing dog. Smith allegedly became angry.

Authorities who searched Smith following her arrest found a glass pipe with white residue and a plastic bag containing a crystalline substance, which was suspected of being methamphetamine, according to court documents.

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Officials with Lake County Enivronmental Health said an algal bloom that can sicken people or pets has been confirmed in Lake Mary Ronan, near the northeast shoreline of the lake just west of Flathead Lake.

According to the health department, a local reported the algae, and county officials collected several water samples on Aug. 7. Oscillatoria (OH-SIH-LA-TOR-REEAH), a type of harmful algal species that can produce toxins known as cyanotoxins, was identified in one of the samples from the northeast shoreline.

No cyanotoxins were detected in the samples. Cyanotoxins can be produced at any time when a bloom is present and remain in the water column even after the bloom has visually dissipated.

Health officials advised people to not drink, swallow or swim in water that shows signs of a harmful algal bloom, and to keep children, pets and livestock out of the water.

Direct contact, ingestion or inhalation of the toxins may irritate the skin, eyes, nose, throat and respiratory system, or cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, dizziness, muscle weakness or liver and kidney damage.

If a person or animal contacts the bloom, they should rinse off with tap water immediately.

If illness is suspected, call a health care provider or veterinarian or poison control.

Harmful algal blooms most often occur in Montana’s reservoirs and lakes. Common characteristics include green, blue, light brown or gold coloration and the appearance of grass clippings or paint spilled on the water’s surface.

Harmful algal blooms happen when cyanobacteria, also known as blue green algae, rapidly grow out of control. These organisms are native to Montana and are naturally found at low, safe densities in many freshwater systems.

The blooms typically form when there are lots of nutrients available and when the wind is calm and sky is clear. They do not always release toxins. Water sampling is the only way to determine if toxins are present.

The Montana Department of Environmental Quality and Department of Public Health and Human Services maintain a website where people can submit and view reports of suspected blooms at HAB.mt.gov.

State agencies will work with the local jurisdiction to sample for the presence of toxins and monitor the incident. Recreationalists may check the website and view the map of reported blooms, health advisories, and information associated with reports. The site also has photos and information on how to identify a HAB.

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AND the entire student body of many schools in Flathead, Lake and Lincoln County school districts will be able to access free breakfast and lunch for the 2024-25 school year under the federally funded Community Eligibility Provision.

Families do not need to sign up or fill out paperwork to participate.

The following are the participating school districts in Flathead and Lincoln counties. All schools within these districts will serve free meals:

Columbia Falls School District, Eureka School District, Evergreen School District, Fortine School District, Fair-Mont-Egan School District, Helena Flats School District, Smith Valley School District, Kalispell Public Schools, Marion School District, Polson School District, Ronan School District, Swan River School District and Troy School District.

The Community Eligibility Provision is a component of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010. The provision serves high-poverty schools and districts. To be eligible, a minimum of 40% of a school’s student population must be from low-income families.

A student is identified as low-income if their family participates in any of the following programs: Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Cash Assistance or Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations. Students are also identified if they live in foster care, are homeless, runaways or migrants, or participate in Head Start early childhood education programs.

The provision intends to increase student participation and access to nutritious meals improve student learning and eliminate social stigma, unpaid meal balances and paperwork for families and school staff.

Participating schools will be reimbursed by federal funds based on the percentage of identified students. Schools will be re-certified every four years.

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