Montoya accepts plea deal, first offender status, receives probation

The former WPR engineer was accused of tampering with radio equipment used for state and federal emergency alerts. He ran unsuccessfully for a Laramie City Council seat earlier this year.

Albany County Courthouse // Photo: Tony Webster

A former candidate for Laramie City Council has been placed on probation following his no contest plea in the criminal case that had threatened to unravel his campaign.

Paul Montoya, the runner-up in this year’s Ward 1 race, was charged last summer with crimes against computer users, a felony punishable by up to three years in prison. He initially pleaded not guilty.

Shortly after the election, Montoya’s charge was downgraded from felony “crimes against computer users” to misdemeanor “computer trespass,” and he entered into a plea of no contest — accepting a deal with prosecutors which will allow him to avoid the trial that had been set for February.

“Paul Montoya is granted first offender status pursuant to Wyoming Statute §7-13-301, adjudication of guilt is withheld, and he is placed on unsupervised probation for a period of ONE (1) year,” the court’s order states. “... compliance with the conditions of this order will result in discharge from probation and dismissal of this matter; however, any violations of the Defendant's probation will result in adjudication of guilt and sentencing for the charged offense.”

The terms of his probation require Montoya to “remain law abiding,” “not associate with anyone who uses, possesses, or cultivates a controlled substance” and to inform the court if he moves. The court also charged Montoya $370 — $300 of which will go to the Wyoming Crime Victim’s Compensation Fund.

Paul Montoya // Courtesy campaign photo

Montoya did not respond to a request for comment. He told Cowboy State Daily it was “not worth the time and expense” to defend himself at trial.

Montoya, formerly the engineering director for Wyoming Public Radio, was accused of disabling his former employer’s radio transmitters and locking out his former colleagues from re-enabling those transmitters remotely.

The Wyoming Public Radio Network plays a key role in the federal emergency alert system. It also aids in broadcasting state- and county-level alerts.

“The [U.S. Federal Emergency Alert System] is a national public warning system, commonly used by local and state authorities to deliver important emergency information, including AMBER alerts, weather alerts and more,” the affidavit states.

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Disclosure: Jeff Victor, the owner and editor of this news outlet and the reporter who wrote this story, is a part-time employee of Wyoming Public Radio.