Allmaras gets suspended sentence in felony drug, theft case

On August 29, 2019 a complaint was filed charging Louis James Allmaras of New Rockford with five criminal counts in Eddy County: Class A Felony unlawful manufacture of a controlled substance (500 g or more of marijuana); Class B Felony theft of property valued at $10,000-$50,000; Class C Felony possession of drug paraphernalia (methamphetamines); and misdemeanor charges of making a false report to law enforcement and possession of drug paraphernalia (marijuana). Nearly a year later, Allmaras reached a plea agreement with the state and avoided jail time.

According to the criminal complaint, Allmaras was allegedly growing 96 marijuana plants, ranging from 4 to 7 feet tall, on his property in Eddy County. The yield from the plants totaled more than 500 g, authorities alleged.

Allmaras also reportedly stole property from the estate of Alfred Klumph, including a $500 horse saddle; a $500 wolverine rug; Yukon moose mount valued at $6,000; an elk mount worth approximately $750; a caribou mount valued at $1,500; a mountain lion mount worth approximately $3,500; a black bear rug valued at $800; two rifles; a handgun; a box of ammo with Alfred Klumph's name and address on it; and checkbooks, jewelry, electronics and several other small items consisting of the personal effects of Alfred and Gail Klumph. When an associate of Allmaras’, Dillon Huber, was found in possession of some of Klumph’s property, Allmaras allegedly told police he hadn’t been in contact with Huber for some time, then later admitted Huber was at Allmaras’ home a few days prior. Items belonging to the Klumphs were also found in a garage/shed near Allmaras’ home, the complaint alleges.

Allmaras pleaded not guilty to the charges during two court appearances in December 2019 and January 2020. A jury trial was set for July 14 and 15 in Eddy County District Court.

On July 6, the State moved to dismiss the charges of Class A Felony unlawful manufacture of a controlled substance (500 g or more of marijuana) and Class C Felony possession of drug paraphernalia (methamphetamines). According to Eddy County State’s Attorney Ashley Lies, the charges were dropped due to “lack of sufficient evidence, based upon lab results from the North Dakota State Department of Toxicology that revealed the tested items were not controlled substances as defined by North Dakota law.”

On July 8, the State moved to dismiss the misdemeanor charge of possession of drug paraphernalia (marijuana), as a recent change to North Dakota law decriminalizing marijuana made the charge an infraction. “A person charged with an infraction in North Dakota is (a) not entitled to a jury trial (for which this entire matter was set) and (b) is not entitled to court-appointed counsel (for which the Defendant had appointed),” Lies noted.

Also on July 8, the State filed an Amended Information against Allmaras, identifying the dismissed charges and downgrading the theft of property charge against Allmaras from a Class B Felony to a Class C Felony “based upon specific property stolen which consisted of items specifically detailed in N.D.C.C. § 12.1-23-05(3), subsections d, g, and k,” Lies said.

Allmaras pleaded guilty to the amended Class C Felony theft of property charge and the misdemeanor charge of making false reports to law enforcement in court on July 14. Per North Dakota Century Code, Allmaras faced up to five years in prison and/or a fine of up to $10,000 for the felony charge alone. However, as part of the plea agreement, Allmaras was sentenced to 18 months in prison, with 17 months and 3 days suspended. He was given credit for 23 days served, and therefore will serve no time for his crimes. Instead, he be subject to two years of unsupervised probation.

Allmaras was also sentenced in a second case, involving charges of driving under the influence (DUI), driving under suspension (DUS) and fleeing a police officer filed in November 2019. Allmaras was seen driving a vehicle westbound on Eddy County 9 when a deputy tried to stop him for outstanding warrants. After a short chase, Allmaras lost control of his vehicle at the intersection of Eddy County 9 and 63rd Avenue, and he was taken into custody. In court on July 14, he pleaded guilty to the DUI and DUS charges, and the charge of fleeing a police officer was dismissed per the plea agreement. His 30-day suspended jail sentence in that case was concurrent, and his $500 in fees were consolidated with the prior case.

Lies explained how the sentencing decision was reached in a written statement, “Sentencing requests are made based on the facts and severity of the charges of each case and the evidence available.” Lies noted that prosecutors suggest sentences based upon sentencing guidelines and then bring them to the Court for review before a Judgment is entered. The Court has the discretion to determine the sentence ordered.

That wasn’t the only factor in the sentencing decision, however. The other major factor was COVID-19. “The current COVID-19 pandemic has unfortunately forced prosecutors across the nation to modify their sentencing decisions in order to adhere to local guidelines, requests of the Courts, jails, and correctional facilities, as well as the health and safety of all involved in the criminal justice system. In short, each sentencing request is carefully made and addresses multiple facts and issues,” Lies explained. She added that any citizen interested in learning more about the judicial system or in seeing sentencing decisions being made is welcome to attend court hearings during any of the Master Calendar dates held in their county each month.

Lies said COVID-19 has greatly impacted the way the judicial system operates. “Besides our sentencing decisions, the largest impact was when we were handling all our cases telephonically for a few months. Handling criminal cases, which frequently require in-person appearances, by phone was new to prosecutors, judges, and court staff across the country,” she stated. The North Dakota Supreme Court provided regular guidance to address changes to court rules, which Lies said greatly improved their ability to effectively do their jobs.

There are a couple of bright spots too. First, telephonic hearings resulted in the best appearance rate for Initial Appearances that Lies can recall. Additionally, local law enforcement officers saved valuable time and expense during the COVID-19 quarantine, as they were not required to transport inmates back and forth to the LEC or other correctional facilities for hearings. Rather, defendants appeared electronically from their detainment.

Now that everyone is back in the courtroom for hearings, Lies said her office is sending out Rule 43 Plea Agreements prior to Initial Appearances for infractions (i.e. eligible marijuana offenses) and other minor offenses such as first-offense driving under suspension cases where she would not recommend that the defendant serve jail time immediately. This action allows potential defendants to elect to plead guilty in writing prior to their court appearance.

“If the paperwork and fees and fines are received by our office timely, the Defendant can be sentenced by writing and isn’t required to appear in court, which reduces the number of people coming into the Courthouse and having contact with Court personnel,” Lies concluded. “I can’t imagine we will see another situation like this in our lifetime, so while it has been extremely challenging, it has also been exciting to be involved in this unique evolution of the legal system.”

Eddy County Sheriff Paul Lies said the Klumph burglary/theft investigation is ongoing. “Search warrants have been executed on (the individuals) in other jurisdictions and additional property has been recovered. We are currently working with those jurisdictions to identify potential charges that may be submitted to the Eddy County State’s Attorney.