Unfriendly game leads to prison time

A Green River man will serve time in prison for beating up his wife.

Darrel Lee Montez, 42, appeared in the Third District Court of Judge Richard Lavery at a change of plea and sentencing hearing to two felony counts of aggravated assault and battery and one misdemeanor charge of domestic battery.

In exchange for Montez’ guilty plea to one count of aggravated assault and battery and one misdemeanor charge of domestic battery, the other felony charge of aggravated assault and battery was dismissed.

Montez was given an eight-to-10-year prison sentence with credit given for 207 days served for the felony charge, which is to run concurrent with his six-month jail sentence on the misdemeanor charge.

According to court documents, on Oct. 23, 2016, a Rock Springs Police officer responded to the Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County to check on a woman who said she was beaten by her husband.

Upon arrival, the officer tried to speak with Victoria Klemetsen, who was in obvious pain while laying on a hospital bed.

The officer observed a large wound on her left cheek and it appeared to be bruised. The RSPD officer tried to interview Klemetsen, but she was in too much pain and he decided to stop the interview.

Montez was interviewed; and after the interview he was arrested.

The officer then went back to the hospital to interview Klemetsen again. He asked if it was alright to try another interview and she said yes.

During the interview, the officer had to take multiple breaks because he could tell Klemetsen was in pain and she would get visibly upset and start breathing hard.

Klemetsen told the officer she and Montez were playing a game; and while they were playing Montez was on his cell phone. She asked him to get off of the cell phone and he got mad and told her to shut up and them proceeded to call her names.

Klemetsen said Montez hit her three times on the right cheek, once on the left cheek and twice on the top of her left shoulder. She said Montez head butted her too, which caused pain in her nose.

Klemetsen said after she was hit she fell down and hit the bathroom door and toilet while she was falling to the floor.

She told the officer she didn’t remember where her body hit as she fell because she lost consciousness for a bit. When she tried to stand up, she fell down again. By this time Montez had left.

Klemetsen could not remember which hand Montez used to hit her or if he used and open hand or a fist, but she thought he used an open hand.

Klemetsen also told the officer she and Montez had been together for 15 years and they have three children together.

A medical record on Klemetsen obtained by a police officer showed Klemetsen had a fractured shoulder and displacement of that same shoulder.