Troy Kincheloe

Robert Jones III

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For severely beating a Cody resident last spring, a Montana man with a past criminal record has been ordered to serve 14-20 years in prison.

Troy Kincheloe, 59, accepted the sentence for a count of aggravated assault and battery, a felony defined as causing serious bodily injury under circumstances that show “extreme indifference to the value of human life.”

“I apologize to the court, [the victim], to everybody,” Kincheloe said at a Jan. 4 hearing in Park County District Court. “I’m sorry for the way things turned out, that occurred.”

Kincheloe had been fixing up a camper on Ernest Oliver’s property and told police he’d known the man for decades. But for reasons that are unclear, Kincheloe attacked Oliver on the afternoon of April 7, 2022. Oliver testified that he’d been sleeping on his couch when Kincheloe began punching him in the face and dragged him by his hair.

Kincheloe broke the man’s eye socket and cheek bones in the assault and the man injured himself further as he fled from his Carter Avenue home. Oliver was transferred to an intensive care unit in Billings and incurred nearly $28,500 worth of medical bills.

“I don’t know what started this, what caused it, I don’t care no more,” Oliver said at this month’s hearing. “I just don’t want [Kincheloe] around me ever again.”

Kincheloe had initially claimed it was a case of self defense, telling police he’d been working on the camper when Oliver came at him with an ax. One of Kincheloe’s acquaintances, Robert T. Jones III, bolstered the story, telling police he’d witnessed the incident. 

However, Cody Police Sgt. Seth Horn said in an affidavit that “it became clear that the injuries that [the victim] sustained were not consistent with mere self defense.”

As police continued to investigate, charging documents say Jones retracted his account. The 35-year-old allegedly admitted he’d actually been a dozen miles out of town, working on the South Fork, when the incident occurred. Jones initially explained he’d been “confused” when he reported witnessing an ax attack, charging documents say, but he later said Kincheloe had asked him to say he’d seen Oliver with a hatchet.

The day after Kincheloe’s sentencing, on Jan. 5, the Park County Attorney’s Office charged Jones with accessory after the fact, a felony charge that carries up to three years of prison time.

Kincheloe faced a much steeper potential penalty, not only because he committed the underlying crime, but because of his record. It includes a 2001 felony conviction for possessing meth and a 2004 felony conviction for false imprisonment, both in the state of Florida.

Deputy Park County Attorney Jack Hatfield opted to charge Kincheloe as a “habitual criminal,” which turned the maximum 10-year sentence he’d been facing into a minimum.

In November, Kincheloe offered a type of guilty plea in exchange for prosecutors seeking no more than 20 years in prison, down from the maximum of 50 years. The parties had been set to argue the appropriate sentence, but Hatfield and court-appointed defense attorney Tim Blatt ultimately agreed on 14-20 years.

Judge Simpson said it was an appropriate length of time, given the severity of the victim’s injuries and Kincheloe’s past offenses. The judge said part of what makes the case tragic is that Oliver was already suffering from other health issues.

“His condition has worsened even today,” Simpson said.

Kincheloe offered what’s known as an Alford plea to aggravated assault, acknowledging that prosecutors likely had enough evidence to convict him, but not explicitly admitting his guilt. However, he apologized to the victim twice at the sentencing hearing.

“Based on what you’ve said to the court, I think you freely acknowledge that what you did to Mr. Oliver was inexcusable. There was no justification for it. It didn’t fit the definition of self defense or any other affirmative defense that might be alleged in this situation, and you are very sorry for your actions,” Judge Simpson followed up. “Would all of that be true, correct and accurate?”

“Yes, your honor,” Kincheloe said.

Simpson ordered the defendant to pay whatever portion of Oliver’s $28,481.70 worth of medical bills go unpaid by Medicaid and other sources — and to have “zero contact” with Oliver and his sister going forward. 

“They’ll never have a problem with me,” Kincheloe pledged, saying he would work to pay whatever he owes. “I will never come near Park County again.”

He remained in the Park County Detention Center on Wednesday, awaiting transport to prison. Kincheloe has already served 9 months of his sentence. Jones, meanwhile, was free on a $10,000 surety bond with a preliminary hearing set for today (Thursday).