Standoff suspect pleads guilty

SANDPOINT — A Sandpoint man who engaged in an armed standoff with law enforcement earlier this year pleaded guilty Friday to two counts of aggravated assault.

Codi Michael Muskrat entered the pleas during a pretrial conference. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 23.

The charges against Muskrat, 25, stem from a Jan. 10 confrontation outside a residence on the city’s north side.

Sandpoint Police Officer Ben Koester and Bonner County Sheriff’s Deputy Brandon Littrell were summoned to a residence on Maddie Lane after Muskrat allegedly battered a relative outside a Ponderay gas station.

Muskrat was found sitting on the front porch with an assault rifle in his lap, according to Sandpoint Police reports.

During the ensuing standoff, Muskrat allegedly threatened to shoot officers and placed the muzzle of the rifle in his mouth at one point.

The relative and Koester tried to coax him into surrendering peacefully, the reports said. Muskrat set the rifle aside, but took it up when he saw a sheriff’s deputy moving in from a concealed location.

With the rifle at his side, Muskrat allegedly approached Littrell with his chest out, prompting the deputy to push Muskrat into a deck chair and pin him in place. Muskrat resisted arrest and had to be jolted with a Tazer, the reports said.

Based on communications found on Muskrat’s phone, authorities believe Muskrat was intending to provoke a shootout in which he would be killed by law enforcement, the reports said.

The rifle turned out to be a .22-caliber Mossberg, but had the design characteristics of a more powerful AR-15-style rifle, according to court documents.

In addition to the two felony assault counts, misdemeanor charges of battery, petit theft and resisting arrest were also filed against Muskrat. Muskrat was also charged with a sentencing enhancement because he used a deadly weapon during the episode.

In a plea agreement with the state, the battery charge was dismissed in exchange for pleas of guilt to two counts of aggravated assault, resisting arrest and petit theft. The state also dismissed the enhancement, which could have tacked on 15 years to whatever sentence Muskrat received on the underlying charges.

Muskrat faces up to five years in prison on the assault charges. Bonner County Chief Deputy Prosecutor Shane Greenbank agreed to hew to the sentencing recommendations made by the Idaho Department of Correction following a presentence interview, court records indicate.

Muskrat was released on his own recognizance after entering the pleas. Conditions of his release include enrollment in an outpatient rehabilitation program, and drug and alcohol testing 10 times a month to monitor his compliance, court documents state.