David Kellett

A 56-year-old Powell man is facing nearly a dozen felony charges that allege he subjected a minor to sexual, physical and mental abuse over a period of years.

The Park County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office has charged David A. Kellett with 11 felonies, including nine counts of second-degree sexual abuse of a minor.

Kellett was arrested Dec. 12, but the case against him remained confidential until it cleared a preliminary hearing in Park County Circuit Court and progressed to District Court early last week.

Charging documents say the abuse is alleged to have concluded over a year ago. However, the allegations didn’t come to law enforcement’s attention until early December.

In an affidavit filed in support of the charges, Powell Police Investigator Chris Wallace said he learned of the allegations on Dec. 3 and interviewed the minor the following day. Wallace said the minor reported that Kellett had abused her many times and in multiple ways. As one specific example, she said Kellett made her sit beside him while he watched pornography and touched himself, the affidavit says. 

The minor also reported that Kellett inappropriately touched her. On one specific instance, she reportedly said Kellett tried to touch her genital area and she fought back. That caused Kellett to yell at the minor and push her to the ground, the court documents allege.

On another occasion, the minor recalled that Kellett punched her in the face;
Wallace said he obtained a photo from that time period that showed the girl with a black eye.

The investigator also spoke with two other people, who appeared to corroborate parts of the minor’s story. For example, one individual reported that Kellett “had a horrible porn addiction” and another confirmed that Kellett had been alone with the minor at times.

Wallace ultimately concluded that Kellett had caused “substantial mental and emotional injury” to the minor.

Kellett is a disabled military veteran and owns an IT business in Powell.

He had been an active participant in local politics — helping launch a local chapter of the conservative Tea Party movement in 2009 and unsuccessfully running as a Republican candidate for Wyoming House District 25 in 2010 and 2012. However, Kellett has not been visibly active in local politics over the past decade.

In early 2017, Powell police arrested Kellett near Powell Middle School, after he reportedly intervened in a scuffle between juveniles. Witnesses alleged that Kellett had yelled and swore at two youths who were “messing around.” Kellett was initially charged with misdemeanor counts of breach of peace and interference with a peace officer, but the case was dismissed by prosecutors about six months later, court records show.

Kellett recently indicated that he’d fallen on rough financial times, putting out a public plea for financial donations in a May post to the website GoFundMe. In an accompanying YouTube video, Kellett said he’d lost all of his money to “a crypto scheme,” was going through a divorce and “barely hanging on.”

He was visibly distraught at his initial Dec. 15 court appearance.

“I’m just in shock,” Kellett said after the charges were read and Deputy Park County Prosecuting Attorney Ericka Smith recommended a $100,000 cash only bond.

“I don’t know what to do,” Kellett said.

Circuit Court Judge Joey Darrah appointed a public defender to represent Kellett and then set bail at $200,000 cash only — double the prosecution’s recommendation.

“When I … weigh all the facts and circumstances, look at the strength of the case, look at a public safety risk, in my mind, there’s a huge flight risk in a case like this,” Darrah said.

Wyoming law gives special protections to those charged with sexual crimes, generally prohibiting court and law enforcement officials from disclosing those defendants’ names unless and until the case reaches the district court level. 

To protect their identities, defendants are typically referred to by their initials in the proceedings at the Circuit Court level. During Kellett’s Dec. 15 appearance, Darrah accidentally referred to him as “Mr. Kellett” and then ordered the Tribune and any others observing the hearing “not to publish or identify the defendant by name.”

That restriction lapsed following a Dec. 23 preliminary hearing, when Darrah found there was enough evidence for Kellett’s 11 charges to proceed toward a trial in district court.

Kellett’s next court appearance will be an arraignment, where he will formally enter a plea to the allegations.

He remains in custody.