A 28-year-old man who led law enforcement on a high-speed chase before threatening officers with a machete has pleaded guilty to assault with a weapon.
Ryan Stanford Lewandowski appeared at a change-of-plea hearing in Flathead County District Court on June 29. He will be sentenced in January 2018.
According to court documents, the Kalispell Police Department received a report of a disturbance at a Kalispell restaurant at 10:30 p.m. on March 21. By the time police arrived, Lewandowski was leaving the scene. Law enforcement followed him. Lewandowski then allegedly drove through residential areas at speeds up to 65 miles per hour. The pursuit ended when law enforcement deployed spike strips to stop Lewandowski.
Once the vehicle was stopped, Lewandowski got out and advanced toward officers with a machete. Lewandowski eventually dropped the weapon, but officers had to use a Taser to get him into custody. While being transported to the Flathead County Detention Center, Lewandowski reportedly threatened the officers and said, “You’re not getting past my homies. They gonna kill you.”
Lewandowski was charged with assault with a weapon and criminal endangerment. Per the plea agreement, the criminal endangerment charge was dropped.