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Man charged with attempted deliberate homicide after Helena crash

Lewis and Clark County Courthouse
Posted at 1:50 PM, Feb 05, 2024
and last updated 2024-02-05 15:50:07-05

HELENA — A 21-year-old Helena man is facing a charge of attempted deliberate homicide, after police say he tried to hit someone with a car and crashed into the side of a building.

Christian Twoteeth-Raymond made his first appearance in Lewis and Clark County Justice Court Friday. He is also facing five other charges: two counts of assault with a weapon, plus criminal endangerment, intimidation and DUI.

The Helena Police Department says the incident happened around 2 a.m. Friday outside a business in the 2100 block of North Last Chance Gulch. According to court documents, witnesses told officers they saw Twoteeth-Raymond drive at high speed toward a group of three people standing outside, before crashing into a wall.

Christian Twoteeth-Raymond

Court documents say the victims told investigators Twoteeth-Raymond had come up to the group acting aggressively. They say video surveillance from the building later showed his vehicle back out of a parking space, slowly line up toward the group, then accelerate quickly. The footage showed all three ran out of the area to avoid getting hit, before the vehicle hit a curb, went into the air and crashed into the building.

According to documents, Twoteeth-Raymond’s vehicle rolled over, and he was trapped inside. Authorities say he appeared to be intoxicated, but he refused to submit to DUI testing. They say, while at the hospital for an evaluation, he made threats against an investigating officer and the officer’s family.

HPD says no one involved in the incident suffered any life-threatening injuries.

Court documents say investigators believe Twoteeth-Raymond’s actions to slowly line his vehicle up with the group he had a confrontation with demonstrated his intent and that he acted purposefully.

Justice of the Peace Mike Swingley set Twoteeth-Raymond’s bond at $50,000.