A Northwest Montana man pleaded not guilty on Friday to two felony counts related to an alleged pattern of sexual assault that involved two children over a six-year period.
Brian Christopher Emerson, 41, is charged with sexual assault and sexual intercourse without consent. He entered his not guilty pleas in Flathead County District Court Friday afternoon in front of Judge Dan Wilson. Emerson has been in custody at the Flathead County Detention Center since Feb. 26 and had initially asked for a reduction of his $100,000 bail. That request was withdrawn at Friday’s hearing.
According to charging documents, a 14-year-old girl called a child abuse hotline in August 2020 to report Emerson had assaulted her at a home in Columbia Falls. The girl described the assault and said another girl may have been similarly victimized.
The second girl was later interviewed by law enforcement and disclosed that Emerson had assaulted her on numerous occasions, beginning when she was just 11. Those assaults continued for six years and happened at locations in Ferndale, Olney and Columbia Falls.