An 18-year-old Kalispell woman who allegedly led law enforcement on a high-speed chase after stealing multiple vehicles had been high on methamphetamine, heroin and LSD for a week and a half leading up to the chase.
Montana Kelly has been charged with six felonies stemming from the chase earlier this month, including two counts of theft, criminal possession of dangerous drugs, assault with a weapon, criminal endangerment, and criminal mischief.
Kelly denied all of the allegations at a hearing on May 25 in Flathead County District Court. She is being held on $100,000 bond at the Flathead County Detention Center and will stand trial later this year.
According to court documents, in late April and early May, Kelly broke into multiple vehicles in the Kalispell area, stealing everything from firearms to a doctor’s stethoscope. On the morning of May 1, a Kalispell man reported that his Toyota pickup truck had been stolen. The man also reported that there was an AR-15 rifle in the backseat of the vehicle.
Two days later, a Kalispell police officer spotted the stolen vehicle and tried to stop it. After a brief pursuit, a male and female inside the vehicle stopped the car and fled the scene. The female dropped a purse with pills and Kelly’s identification card. Inside the vehicle, officers found a meth pipe, syringes, three wallets and several backpacks full of ammunition.
On the morning of May 4, a Kalispell-area woman reported waking up to the sound of her husband’s truck starting. The woman went outside and confronted a woman later identified as Kelly. When Kelly saw the woman, she got out of the truck and got into a nearby Subaru. The woman attempted to stop Kelly but she quickly put the vehicle in reverse and drove away, knocking the woman to the ground.
A short while later, a Whitefish police officer spotted a stolen vehicle on U.S. Highway 93. The officer tried to pull the vehicle over but a chase ensued, at times reaching 100 miles per hour. Eventually, the vehicle turned on Garland Lane and crashed through two different sets of metal gates. Kelly fled the scene on foot and evaded law enforcement for more than an hour in the woods. She was eventually arrested with the assistance of the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office, Whitefish Police Department, Montana Highway Patrol and Two Bear Air.
After she was arrested, Kelly allegedly admitted to using methamphetamine, heroin and LSD for more than a week and a half.
If convicted of all charges, Kelly could face up to 75 years in prison.