Jan. 6 Suspect Placed Under House Arrest After Allegedly Killing Mountain Lion: Officials

Patrick Montgomery (Colorado Parks and Wildlife)

A judge on Monday said that a Colorado hunting guide accused of attacking a U.S. Capitol Police officer on Jan. 6 should be placed under house arrest after he allegedly had possession of a gun and shot and killed a mountain lion.

Prosecutors said that Patrick Montgomery, 48, killed the mountain lion during a March 31 hunt. They said that he was ordered by a judge not to have any “illegal guns” while he was facing charges related to the Jan. 6 incident, according to a motion filed (pdf) on May 12.

“Montgomery has no respect for the Court’s orders, just like he had no respect for law enforcement at the Capitol on January 6,” the prosecutors claimed in their 5-page motion, arguing that he violated his release conditions.

On Monday, U.S. District Judge Randolph D. Moss ordered Montgomery be held under house arrest, allowing him to only leave home for court appearances, for medical care, and other court-approved activities.

The documents also stipulated that an FBI Task Force officer learned Montgomery used a .357 magnum handgun to shoot a mountain lion at a Colorado park. The officer said that he told a park official that he shot the lion before the official ran a background check on him, learning that he pleaded guilty to several felony robbery charges in 1996.

“Montgomery is a convicted felon and is prohibited by law to carry a firearm, including a handgun,” the documents added.

Prosecutors have said that on Jan. 6, he allegedly “tried to grab a Metropolitan Police Department officer’s baton, wrestled him to the ground for it, and then kicked the officer in the chest while wearing a boot” instead of “peacefully protesting.”

Mountain lions, otherwise known as cougars or pumas, are not illegal to hunt in Colorado. According to CBS Denver, Montgomery owns a hunting guide business called Pmonte Outdoors, and he shot the big cat on the last day of the 2021 hunting season for mountain lions.