GREAT FALLS — Pamela Jo Polejewski has been charged following a shoot-out that killed a man and injured a Cascade County Sheriff's deputy. The incident happened at her residence along Wexford Lane just south of McIver Road on Friday, February 23, 2024.
According to Cascade County Sheriff Jesse Slaughter, a deputy was executing a search warrant at the residence last Friday in relation to previous charges of animal cruelty.
Slaughter noted that Polejewski’s history with courts goes back to 2003 when she was first charged in relation to animals on her property.
In May 2020, Polejewski was charged with several counts of animal cruelty after a fire on her property; one of the conditions of her release in 2020 said that she “shall neither own, nor possess any animals of any species during the pendency of this action.”
In recent weeks, however, there were reports that she had been keeping animals on her property and that she had been buying food for the animals, which is what led to the Sheriff's Office serving the search warrant on Friday.
Michael Lee Hanson - said to be in a relationship with Polejewski - reportedly engaged in a gun battle with the deputy at the Wexford Lane residence. Hanson was shot by the deputy and died.
The deputy was shot in the shoulder; he was treated at a hospital in Great Falls and released; he is currently on administrative leave in accordance with department policy.
Court documents state that on Friday afternoon (February 23), Polejewki was advised by a deputy that her truck was being impounded in relation to the investigation into whether she had been keeping animals.
A witness advised officers that Polejewski was in possession of "multiple animals," including cats, birds, and fish, at an apartment on 15th Avenue South in Great Falls.
The witness told officers that Polejewski had asked two people to remove the animals from the apartment, once she learned that her truck was being impounded, according to the court documents.
As the two people were removing animals from the apartment, they learned about Polejewski's history of animal abuse, and they removed the animals from their vehicle and left them near her apartment, and then left.
At about 2:15 p.m., officers arrived at the apartment, and after obtaining a search warrant, they found live fish inside, but no cats or birds. However, the court documents state that the officers found cat food, cat litter, and "multiple" animal cages, noting that there was an "overwhelming smell of animal feces."
Polejewski, 67 years old, was arrested and has now been charged with solicitation of tampering with or fabricating physical evidence.
FROM MAY 2020:
