Henifin pleads guilty to assault

POLSON — Judge Deborah

“Kim” Christopher set a sentencing date of Aug. 31 for a Polson man who admitted to assaulting his girlfriend. Tyler Preston Henifin, 24, entered a plea of guilty in Polson District Court July 13 to felony strangulation of a partner or family member and misdemeanor partner or family member assault. He was initially charged with felony counts of SPFM and sexual intercourse without consent, but the charges were amended as part of the plea agreement. The agreement will also dismiss one count of felony theft for a separate incident involving the same person.

According to court records, on Oct. 1, 2022, a deputy with the Lake County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of a woman being assaulted. At the scene, the officer noticed the victim appeared visibly upset and was crying. She told the deputy that Henifin had come over the night before. She explained that they used to be in an intimate relationship but had since broken up. She added that they were laying together watching television and she fell asleep. She says she woke up and Henifin had his arms around her. She advised him that he was crossing some boundaries and “acting like a rapist” which she said angered him. Henifin responded with “you want to see what a rapist is?” Henifin allegedly got on top of the victim and began choking her before sexually assaulting her. The deputy observed injuries to the victim’s neck and left leg. Henifin remains at liberty. enforcement and youth court will be actively addressing curfew violations.

The plea agreement comes with a recommendation of a commitment to the Montana Department of Corrections for five years all suspended for felony SPFM and one year DOC all suspended for misdemeanor PFMA. The sentences will run concurrently. The judge is not bound by the agreement.

The established curfew hours for juveniles for all of Lake County, including cities within Lake County, pursuant to MCA 7-322302 are:

Curfew hours for all juve- niles are:

Sunday through Thursday

– 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.

Friday Through Saturday –12 a.m. to 6 a.m.

All city parks in Polson close at 10 p.m.

All city parks in Ronan close at 11 p.m.

- During the curfew hours, a juvenile must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.

- Juveniles will be issued citations for curfew violations by law enforcement.

- Parents will be notified by law enforcement and will be required to pick up their child(ren) from law enforce- ment and may result in further action.

- Pursuant to MCA 7-322302 a person convicted of violating the curfew ordinance shall be fined an amount not to exceed $75 and by a sentence of up to 10 hours of community service, or both.