Man pleads not guilty in road rage case

A 27-year-old Columbia Falls man pleaded not guilty April 11 to felony assault with a weapon following a road rage incident.

Joshua Darling faces up to 20 years in prison and a $50,000 fine if convicted. His next hearing is scheduled for May 8.

According to court records, sheriff’s deputies responded to Darling’s Trap Road residence on March 26 and listened to conflicting accounts.

A man told deputies he was driving down Columbia Falls Stage Road when Darling flipped him off. The man said he followed Darling to the Trap Road residence and pulled in the driveway behind Darling’s vehicle.

The man said that as he exited his truck, Darling used a metal pipe to break out one of the truck’s windows and then hit the man on the arm. The man then allegedly pulled out a gun in self-defense but never fired it.

After speaking to Darling and his father, the deputies concluded Darling’s version of the events was “questionable” because it wasn’t corroborated by the evidence and witness statements.