Man faces lewd conduct charge

SANDPOINT — A Montana man has been arrested on charges that he molested a 7-year-old girl in Bonner County.

Daniel Curtis LaBelle is charged with lewd and lascivious conduct with a minor, an offense which carries the prospect of a lifelong prison sentence if the state obtains a conviction.

LaBelle, a 27-year-old who currently resides in Noxon, was ordered held Friday in lieu of $50,000 bail. Judge Debra Heise ordered LaBelle to have no contact with the alleged victim or her mother and appointed a public defender to represent him, court records show.

A hearing to determine if there’s enough evidence to warrant a trial in 1st District Court is pending.

LaBelle is accused of molesting the girl last month and this month, according to charging papers. A Bonner County sheriff’s detective testified Tuesday that LaBelle admitted himself to the North Idaho Behavioral Health unit at Kootenai Medical Center in Coeur d’Alene, where he allegedly admitted to the sexual misconduct, documents indicate.