Clarkston man charged with allegedly shooting at neighbor’s ATV with handgun

A Clarkston man fed up with his neighbor riding an ATV on a shared driveway is charged with felony second-degree assault after he allegedly shot three times at the tires of the vehicle as it rode by.

Police allege Justin K. Montague, 41, “had enough” of his neighbor driving a Polaris side by side in the gravel driveway on the 2100 block of Reservoir Road in Clarkston and told his neighbor, Adam W. Flerchinger, to stop several times. Flerchinger told Montague “no” and kept driving. Montague went to his shop to retrieve a 9 mm handgun and allegedly attempted to shoot out a tire three times, court records said.

“Justin was under the influence of alcohol,” according to court records. Officers reminded Montague, who holds a concealed carry license, that his training to obtain the license included warnings not to handle a firearm while intoxicated and that he could have shot his neighbor as he tried to hit the moving target, court records said. Officers also told Montague he should have called law enforcement and let them handle the situation.

Asotin County Judge Tina L. Kernan set bond at $7,500 in the case Monday. Montague was also ordered to surrender all firearms to the Asotin County Sheriff’s Office as a condition of his release on bond.

Montague will be back in Asotin County Superior Court for an initial arraignment Sept. 28.

The maximum penalty for felony second-degree assault in Washington is 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine. Because a firearm is alleged to have been used in the incident, there is a mandatory three-year sentence enhancement if Montague is convicted.