Page 25 - Flathead Beacon // 4.2.14

FLATHEADBEACON.COM NEWS APRIL 2, 2014 | 25

The Roundup

From Beacon wire and news services

better set of power tongs at the well site,
FLATHEAD
but would not allow Heller Casing to use

them.
POLSON MAN PLEADS NOT Spokesmen for Pioneer and Whiting
CARPET ON SALE
GUILTY IN DEADLY HAMMER Petroleum did not immediately return
ATTACK
phone calls from The Associated Press
A Polson man accused of attacking seeking comment Wednesday.
50his brother-in-law and fatally assaulting The lawsuit seeks compensatory and
% his father-in-law with a hammer earlier punitive damages and court costs.

this month has pleaded not guilty.
The Occupational Safety and Health
Desmond Alan Mackay appeared in Administration investigated the death,
district court in Polson on Thursday. cited Heller Casing with two safety
KERR-AM reports he pleaded not guilty violations in June 2013 and proposed
OFF
to an amended charge of deliberate ho- $14,000 in ines.
micide as well as two counts of assault Heller Casing is not listed as a defen-
with a weapon.
dant in the lawsuit because under North
Prosecutors say Mackay waited by Dakota state law, an employer carrying

a door to a garage with the hammer on worker’s compensation insurance can-
March 5, intending to assault his broth- not be sued for negligence, Stalpes said.
er-in-law Jesse Waugh, who he believed
SELECT STYLES
owed him money. However, his father- WHITEFISH MAN DENIES
in-law John Barrows walked through ARSON CHARGE
the door irst. He was struck in the head A Whiteish man charged with set-
and later died of his injuries, leading ting his former girlfriend’s house on ire

prosecutors to add the deliberate homi- has denied the allegations of arson.
cide charge.
James Wallace Langley, 34, appeared
in Flathead County District Court ear-
KALISPELL FATHER FILES lier this month to plead not guilty to a
LAWSUIT OVER SON’S OILFIELD felony arson charge stemming from an
DEATH
October 2013 ire.
The father of a Montana man who According to charging documents,
was crushed to death in a North Dakota the Whiteish Fire Department respond-

oil-ield accident in January 2013 has ed to an early-morning ire on Oct. 8,
iled a lawsuit against the owners of the 2013 at a Highland Drive residence. One
drilling rig and the well site, alleging the of the residents sleeping in the house re-
companies failed to provide for the safe- ported waking up at about 3:10 a.m. and
ty of subcontractors.
seeing a lash outside his window.
Randall Winter iled a lawsuit He looked into his yard and saw a gas
against Pioneer Drilling Services Ltd can on ire, and also saw the siding of the
of San Antonio, Texas, and Whiting Pe- house was on ire. He reported putting

troleum Corp. of Denver over his son’s out those blazes with a ire extinguisher
Sale Ends April 30, 2014
death, the Missoulian reported. Win- and noticed a ire trail leading from the
ter’s 22-year-old son, Kyle Winter, of Ka- gas can to the siding of the house.
lispell, worked for Heller Casing.
A short time later, the man saw
InnoviaM Touch carpet is the SUPERSOFT extension of Carpet One Floor & Home’s premier The complaint, iled last week in U.S. smoke coming from the light ixtures in
soft and durable InnoviaM brand carpet. Its incredible built-in stain and soil protection District Court in Great Falls, alleges Pio- his home, and he extinguished embers
ensures that liquids, spills and soil will remove easily, for a long-lasting carpet. This carpet is neer Drilling did not allow Heller Casing there as well.
ideal for consumers looking for that step up from InnoviaM for the ultimate soft experience.
employees to use the appropriate equip- Responding investigators deter-
InnoviaM Touch is the luxe ultra-soft choice that offers the same fade resistance, durability ment to suspend a large wrench called mined that the gas can belonged to
and Gold and Platinum Warranties as Innovia but double the softness. You can actually feel “power tongs” above a well that was be- the house residents and had been in a
the difference.
ing cased with steel pipe near Watford detached garage, which had been un-
City, N.D. The 1,200-pound power tongs locked. The gas can’s spout was found in
• Luxuriously Soft. More ibers per square inch create a softer, more plush carpet.
fell on Kyle Winter, killing him.
the garage, and investigators swabbed it
• Eco-friendly. Fiber made partly from renewable resources for lower environmental impact.
The lawsuit says the cables hold- and the can for DNA.
• Repels Spills. Innotex technology helps repel liquids and spills.
ing up the power tong were attached The homeowners told a detective
• Resists Fading. Color-grabbing technology resists fading to keep looking great for years.
• Gold and Platinum Warranties. Both feature life-of-the-loor guarantee for installation and
through three open hooks reinforced they suspected their daughter’s ex-boy-
stain resistance.
only with electrical tape in minus 20 de- friend, Langley, had set the ire, which
gree temperatures.
caused more than $1,500 in damages.
MASTERPIECE
A Pioneer Drilling worker lifting a When the detective interviewed him,
top drive to grab another section of steel Langley allegedly said he had never
casing accidentally hooked a cable on the touched the gas can and denied being
CARPET ONEpower tongs, lifting them up, the law- involved in the ire. He also voluntarily
FLOOR
& HOME
suit said. Attorney Justin Stalpes wrote gave a DNA sample, the detective report-
that Kyle Winter moved out of the safe ed.
zone to warn the driller running the top On Dec. 5, investigators received the
drive. By then, the driller had raised the DNA results from the gas can and spout
power tongs high enough that the cable from the Montana Crime Lab; the re-
2541 US Highway 2 E • Kalispell detached from the tongs, causing them sults allegedly show a match from the A
N
D
A
I
A
NC
to fall and land on Kyle Winter.
gas can lid and Langley. He was charged
F
(406) 752-0924 • www.carpet1.com
The lawsuit alleges Pioneer had a
with arson on Feb. 3.
Y

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