Crime and Courts

Man accused of brutal motel beating

Posted: Mar 1, 2013 3:04 PM by MTN News

GREAT FALLS - A man has been charged with felony aggravated assault, accused of severely beating a man at the Royal Motel in Great Falls.

Police were called to the motel after receiving a report of an injured, unresponsive man. The police report states that the man was barely breathing and there was a large amount of blood pooling around his head.

According to several witnesses who were in the room at the time, James Dean Bird, Jr., assaulted the man, yelled, "I will knife you," and then punched the man in the head.

The man fell down and lost consciousness. Bird then reportedly braced his arms and "stomped on" the man's head between five and seven times, and then ran away.
One of the witnesses then grabbed Bird and removed him from the room. Bird then ran away and was apprehended by police a short time later on the 700 block of 1st Avenue North. He denied any involvement in the beating.

The injured man was taken to Benefis Hospital for treatment of a broken jaw, a collar bone injury, several fractured teeth and several cuts and bruises. He remained unconscious for several hours after the reported assault.

Prosecutors have requested that bail for Bird, 23, be set at $50,000 due to what they say is a "large criminal history" that includes several assault charges, resisting arrest and carrying a concealed weapon while under the influence.