Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

ISP corporal fired fatal shots

Mark Maykopet and Christie Little. (Kootenai County Sheriff's Department / Kootenai County Sheriff's Department)
An Idaho State Police report confirms that Cpl. Dan Howard fired the shots that killed one person and injured another after two Montana fugitives rammed his patrol car on Feb. 7. Mark Marion Maykopet, 24, of Butte, was treated at Kootenai Medical Center then jailed on a $1.5 million bond. His passenger, Christie O’Leary Little, 40, also known as Christie Ann Little, was killed. Following the incident, detectives found two guns on the floor of the Jeep Cherokee driven by Maykopet, the report said. A fully automatic 9 mm was found behind the rear seat with an empty 32-round magazine. A .25 caliber pistol was found under the passenger seat toward the rear with an eight-round magazine, but the chamber was not loaded. A preliminary hearing scheduled Friday for Maykopet was delayed to allow more time for discovery. Maykopet faces felony charges of battery and eluding a police officer, in addition to being a fugitive from justice on a Montana warrant. Detective Sgt. Brad Maskell of the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Department is investigating Howard’s actions. Howard declined to be interviewed by Maskell, the report said. Howard said in the police report that he stopped the car because it was speeding and because the driver was under the influence of marijuana. The Jeep had a paper Montana temporary vehicle registration but no other plates. At first, Little gave Howard a Montana driver’s license with the name Whittni Cabrera, who is Little’s daughter, the report said. Dispatch advised Howard that Maykopet had a felony warrant for escape and that the stop was considered “high risk.” Cpl. Sean Lind responded to assist. After Lind arrived, Maykopet drove away westbound on Ohio Match Road, and the two ISP units pursued him. Howard’s car became temporarily disabled near a railroad crossing while chasing Maykopet, who was headed south on Ramsey Road. By the time Howard restarted his car, Maykopet had turned around and rammed him, the report said. Howard fired on the vehicle, killing Little and injuring Maykopet. Lind’s location at the time is not clear from the report. However, Lind assisted Howard in taking Maykopet into custody. Maykopet had a felony warrant for escape out of Montana. Little had a felony warrant issued by the U.S. Marshals Service and also was a “person of interest” in Maykopet’s escape, the report said. Maykopet also is wanted on a warrant out of Livingston, Mont., for not paying fines for misdemeanor convictions for drug paraphernalia, public intoxication and obstructing an officer. His record also includes convictions for car theft, drugs and issuing bad checks. Little’s record includes time spent in prison for theft, wire fraud and identity theft. The relationship between the two is unclear. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms is considering federal charges related to the weapons found in the Jeep, the report said.