Poplar man sentenced to 38 months in prison for assaulting officer with hammer

GREAT FALLS  — A Poplar man who admitted to hitting a police officer in the head with a hammer as law enforcement was responding to an assault at his home was sentenced today to 38 months in prison, to be followed by two years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.

Nolan James Hendrickson, 34, pleaded guilty in September 2022 to assault with a dangerous weapon.

Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided.

In court documents, the government alleged that in March 2022 on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation, Hendrickson assaulted and strangled a woman, identified as Jane Doe 1, at his mother’s apartment. Police responded and found Hendrickson strangling Jane Doe 1. The victim, identified as Jane Doe 2, a police officer, tried to stop the assault, but Hendrickson lunged at the officer and hit her in the face with a hammer. Another responding officer fired a round at Hendrickson but missed. As police arrested Hendrickson, he continued to be combative. Hendrickson acknowledged he had been using alcohol and methamphetamine. The victim was treated for injuries from the hammer assault.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica A. Betley prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the FBI, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Roosevelt County Sheriff’s Office and Fort Peck Department of Law and Justice.

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