Former Undersheriff Faces Rape Charge

On Dec. 26, the Montana Department of Justice amended charges against former Valley County Undersheriff Luke Strommen adding the charge of Sexual Intercourse Without Consent, a felony. Strommen has already been charged with the offense of Sexual Abuse of a Child, a felony, as a result of allegations of improprieties of a sexual nature with a 17-year-old victim four years ago. Strommen pled not guilty to that charge in District Court on Oct. 16.

According to the amended court documents, Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) was contacted in November 2018 regarding an additional victim of sexual offense alleged to have been committed by Strommen. The victim indicated her first sexual contact with Strommen was in a hotel room in Great Falls when she was 14-years-old.

The victim states the sexual relationship progressed and lasted until she moved from the area two years later. She also told investigators that Strommen had intercourse with her over 50 times, with most of the encounters occurring in Strommen’s Sheriff’s Office patrol vehicle.

As a result of the additional charges, Strommen is to have no contact with any person under the age of 18 years old, not frequent places where children congregate including schools, parks, playgrounds, can not access the Internet via computer or smartphone and have no contact with witnesses, among others.

After Strommen’s first court appearance on Oct. 16, he was released on conditions including he could not be at a public forum where children were present without the accompaniment of his wife or another adult. He was also able to utilize the Internet on a family device as long as the device he was using was available to law enforcement for viewing.

Strommen is set to appear in District Court on Monday, Jan. 14, at 1:30 p.m. to answer to the additional charges.