THOMPSON FALLS — A Missoula man who said he had been smoking synthetic marijuana for days and been off his psychiatric medication for months pleaded guilty but mentally ill on Tuesday to homicide and other charges in a home invasion in which a Dixon-area man was stabbed to death and his wife’s throat was cut.
Nathan Lee William Calvert, 32, entered his pleas to deliberate homicide and attempted deliberate homicide in District Court in Thompson Falls. He also pleaded guilty to aggravated burglary and robbery. Sentencing was set for Nov. 5.
Calvert said he suffers from mental illness, had not taken his medication and had been smoking “spice” for at least 10 days before he and his brother-in-law left the house for cigarettes on Dec. 6.
He told District Judge Kim Christopher on Tuesday that he felt like he was falling into a black hole and was paranoid that others were trying to kill him.
Prosecutors said Calvert stabbed his brother-in-law and then ran to Doug Morigeau’s house to seek safety, even though he didn’t know Morigeau.
“He answered the door and I asked him for help,” Calvert said.
Morigeau turned to his wife and then turned back to Calvert.
“And then I started stabbing him,” Calvert told the judge.
Morigeau’s wife, Cheryl, was able to run to a neighbor’s house and get help after her throat was cut.
An autopsy found Doug Morigeau was stabbed 54 times. Calvert told investigators he also beat Morigeau with a rifle because he would not die, according to court records.