June 1 – A Kalispell woman accused of using an ax to break into a home where her husband was staying pleaded not guilty to a burglary charge in late May.
Sophia Maria Owen, 39, appeared before Judge Heidi Ulbricht on May 23 for her arraignment in Flathead County District Court. Ulbricht scheduled an omnibus hearing in the case for August 14 and a preliminary conference for October 2.
Owen was initially held in the county jail, but on May 30 he posted $40,000 bail.
Prosecutors alleged in court documents that Owen arrived at an Airport Road home armed with an ax in the evening hours of May 19. Alarmed by her dogs barking, one of the residents investigated the noise and came across Owen who allegedly broke down the door with the axe.
Owen’s husband, who was also in the home at the time, later told authorities that the 39-year-old was trying to reach him, court documents show. Although Owen allegedly smashed the glass of an interior door, he said he kept it closed.
That’s when Owen started punching him through the broken door, according to court documents. She delivered three closed-fist blows, prosecutors alleged, leaving her husband with a loose tooth, an inflamed eye and a swollen cheek.
Owen left before Flathead County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrived. Authorities later caught up with her at a local bar. She had a shard of glass in her hair and a cut on her foot “consistent with a broken glass injury,” according to court documents.
Owen allegedly admitted to visiting the house. When her husband wouldn’t come to the door, she said she broke the door down, according to court documents.
Burglary is punishable by 20 years in prison in the state of Montana and a $50,000 fine.
News Editor Derrick Perkins can be reached at 758-4430 or dperkins@dailyinterlake.com.
