Wendland ordered to pay restitution in ag vandalism case

In Blaine County District Court Monday, Jasper Wendland was sentenced to pay thousands of dollars in restitution for destroying nearly half a million dollars in farming equipment in a drunken rampage in 2022, but no jail time, with a six year deferred imposition of sentence.

Judge Olivia Rieger said Wendland must pay nearly $40,000 to the Gasvoda family of Lone Tree Cattle Company, and $3,700 to Blaine County for the night of destruction, though she did not impose restitution for the $481,000 to Chubb Agribusiness Insurance Company. She did, however, note that the company is fully within its rights to pursue Wendland for that money in civil court, and she expects that they will do just that.

Wendland made a statement saying he was sincerely sorry for his actions and the damage caused, for the embarrassment he brought upon his family and the affects the incident has had on the community.

He said he is committed to working hard and making up for as much of the damage as he can and improving himself.

Wendland, and co-defendant Devon Nelson were served warrants out of both Blaine and Chouteau counties and were charged in Blaine County with five felony counts of criminal mischief pecuniary loss more than $1,500, or alternatively by accountability, and two misdemeanor counts of criminal mischief pecuniary loss less than $1,500.

Felony damages were to farm equipment and materials owned by the Gasvoda family of Lone Tree Cattle Company, including a several-hundred-thousand-dollar crop sprayer, a truck set up to haul and pump water, a trailer with multiple spray totes and a semitractor-trailer that was found almost 14 miles from where it had been parked the previous day. A tractor leased by Blaine County also had windows shot out.

The restitution the court set for Blaine County was $3,700 and for the Gasvoda family directly was $40,000.

The two misdemeanor charges were for fences damaged on two separate properties.

Both men were also charged in Chouteau County with one count of felony criminal mischief pecuniary loss more than $1,500, or alternatively by accountability for damages to a skid-steer and a tractor belonging to Chris Boyce.

Rieger said the state, represented by Blaine County Attorney Kelsie Harwood, is correct that defendants can be required to pay insurance companies for what they have reimbursed to the victims of the crime, however, because Chubb had not filed an affidavit of loss, the court is not responsible for imposing that element of restitution in this case.

She also said she wants to make clear that a deferred imposition of sentence is not the same as a suspended sentence.

While Wendland could see the felony removed from his record should he follow conditions imposed by the court, including the payment of restitution, failure to follow these conditions would result in him facing up to 10 years in prison, the maximum sentence for the charges in this case, and four years more than what the state recommended.

Unlike Wendland's co-defendant, Devon Nelson, who was sentenced earlier this month to 25 days in jail on top of a six-year deferred imposition of sentence, Rieger did not impose any additional jail time as she previously intended.

She said Wendland, unlike Nelson, is working consistently, and by all appearances will likely be responsible for more of the restitution than his co-defendant, and as such it seems appropriate to let him continue working uninterrupted so he can pay his share more quickly.

She also said his hunting and fishing licenses have been forfeited for two years, much like Nelson.

The decision to prioritize working off the restitution mirrored the argument made by Wendland's defense attorney Nathan Hoines, who said his client's actions were childish, foolish and extremely destructive but did not warrant imprisonment when there are more appropriate alternatives.

He also argued that the need for restitution to the family and county were beyond question, but he believes there has not been sufficient documentation provided by Chubb Agribusiness to prove the accuracy of their estimated loss.

Harwood argued for five years of prison time with the Montana Department of Corrections, all suspended, saying the sheer amount of damage makes a deferred imposition of sentence inappropriate.

She said the court cannot ever make whole the victims in this case, who faced tremendous hardship in the wake of the incident.

While Rieger agreed with the defense regarding the deferred imposition of sentence and restitution to the insurance company, she also agreed with Harwood that the losses faced by the family extend well beyond what the court can remedy, as is so often the case in law, unfortunately.

She said Wendland does have skills he can use to work off what he owes.