Homicide suspect surrenders after standoff

After a 31-hour standoff off with police ended Monday a man accused of murdering a Columbia Falls woman is in custody.

Robert Dean Kowalski, 46, surrendered Monday about 6 p.m. at his home on Montana Highway 35. He came out of the house about 30 minutes after police officers fired tear gas into the home.

Kowalski made an initial appearance in Flathead County Justice Court on Tuesday morning. He is charged in Flathead County District Court with one count of deliberate homicide and is being held on $500,000 bond.

His girlfriend, Lorraine Kay Morin, 45, was found shot to death Sunday morning in her home on Montana 206, north of Elk Park Road.

Kowalski's roommate called the Flathead County Sheriff's Office at 11 a.m. Sunday to report that Kowalski told him he had killed his girlfriend and was feeling suicidal. Investigators believe that Morin died hours before the call.

Sheriff's deputies responded to Morin's home and found her body sitting upright in a living room chair. She had been shot once in the mouth.

Morin is the mother of six children, ages 9 to 28. The younger children are reportedly staying with their adult siblings. None of the children were in the home at the time of the incident.It's believed that Kowalski fled to his residence Sunday after shooting Morin. Officers found his pickup truck at his house that afternoon.

The Flathead County SWAT team began surrounding the house. They were later joined by teams from Kalispell and Missoula County.

For several hours, it was not known if Kowalski was alive or even inside the house. Phone calls made to the home weren't answered.

The Kalispell Police Department's Ballistic Engineered Armored Response vehicle was parked near the home and a phone was also dropped on the front doorstep. But calls were not answered.

On Sunday evening, officers broke some windows in the home and used cameras to look inside. Kowalski then began swearing at officers.

A single shot was heard from the rear of the residence around midnight. Kowalski talked with officers until 3 a.m., then was silent until Monday.

He finally surrendered Monday after officers fired tear gas into the home. He came out of the house and raised his arms. Members from the three SWAT team surrounded him.

Kowalski reportedly suffered from mental illness and had previously been suicidal. He also reportedly had a history of domestic violence.

The victim has been sent to the state crime lab in Missoula for a forensic autopsy. Officers were to begin their investigation of the homes on Tuesday.

If convicted of the charge, Kowalski faces up to 110 years or life in prison.