Man accused of clubbing girlfriend

SANDPOINT — A Blanchard man was arrested Friday for allegedly beating his girlfriend over the head with the butt of a shotgun.

John Henry Baker is charged with aggravated battery, a felony.

Baker, 34, made an initial appearance in Bonner County Magistrate Court via video feed from the Bonner County Jail on Monday. Judge Lori Meulenberg ordered Baker held in lieu of $20,000 bail and entered an order forbidding Baker from contact the alleged victim, according to court records.

The alleged victim, 35, told sheriff’s deputies that she and Baker got involved in an argument while driving to his home off Blanchard Cutoff Road, a verbal altercation which continued after their arrival. The woman said she gathered her belongings in the home when Baker emerged from an outbuilding, pointed the shotgun at her and threatened to shoot her, a probable cause affidavit alleges.

The woman said she was not cowed by the threat and Baker proceeded to hit her on the side of the head with the butt of the shotgun using a “golfing-type swing,” according to court documents. She told deputies she was struck at least twice by gun.

The state is a seeking sentencing enhancements against Baker for using a firearm during the commission of a crime and being a persistent violator. An addendum to the criminal complaint notes that Baker was convicted of a 2014 burglary in Kootenai County and a felony drug possession case in Bonner County in 2005.

Together, the sentencing enhancements could add up to 30 years to the underlying sentence if Baker is convicted.

Baker’s arrest on the new charge and alleged methamphetamine use are being cited as violations of his probation in the Kootenai County case.