The Scene – Pondera RV Park, site 3
The Date – Aug 19, 2015
The Time – Approx 9:00 PM – 11:30 PM
The Crime – Domestic Violence
The Story –
A loud argument outside of the 5th wheel trailer in site 3 at Pondera RV Park resulted in a 911 call by the couple in the RV in site 2. A drive-by by the Sheriff made no impact on the combatants. Maxine witnessed the drive-by and the argument as she drove off to the local casino. The arrival of the Conrad police soon after must have driven the couple inside the 5th wheel. When the cops started yelling at them to come out, I noticed and started trying to take pictures. My first attempts came out fuzzy, but the gun-drawn stance is obvious. More police and sheriff vehicles arrived as the incident escalated. One of the officers went around to the other vehicles in the immediate area and told us to leave for our own safety.
While the evacuated campers milled about the dumpster and laundry room, nothing much happened as it got darker and darker. I went across the street and tried to take pictures from the loading dock of the neighboring business. Nothing seemed to be happening, but I was getting tired of standing around so called Maxine to come back. When she got there, we parked closer to the scene, and I played with my camera some more. With the camera propped on the dash, I was able to get a picture of a cop with a rifle with a scope on it trained on the 5th wheel.
About 10:30, a woman appeared in the street. We assume it was the one from inside the 5th wheel, and that she had been able to get out safely. Finally, an hour later, the cops started driving away without a word to the onlookers. We assumed that the guy finally came out, and they took him away.
The manager of the park said that the woman had told her she was going to Missoula that morning. The morning after the incident, I could see the blue SUV still parked in front of the 5th wheel for a while. While I have no facts, my guess is that the woman went to Missoula then came back to the trailer. An argument ensued and the man went crazy when the cops showed up. They got him out without violence and took him away. She spent the rest of the night in the trailer then left in the morning.
