Former Idaho deputy pleads not guilty to 4 felonies

COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho (AP) - A former Kootenai County Sheriff’s deputy accused of kidnapping and beating his estranged wife has pleaded not guilty to four felonies.

Gavin D. Brodwater, 39, maintained his innocence to charges of first-degree stalking, second-degree kidnapping, domestic battery and violating a no-contact order, The Coeur d’Alene Press reported (https://bit.ly/2pZtuPR) Friday.

Brodwater has been accused of twice luring his wife into his vehicle after calling her on her cellphone, which violated the no-contact order, police said. He is also accused of driving her to his house and forcing her to stay despite her efforts to leave.

The couple were separated and living apart when the incidents occurred. In one case, Brodwater allegedly kept his wife for six hours against her will in his Post Falls home.

The woman told police the incident was the second in a series of violations of the no-contact order, including an incident in February in which Brodwater allegedly struck her, causing her to bleed from the nose and mouth.

In the February incident, the woman told police she left a bar in Post Falls and noticed Brodwater following her.

“Gavin had been ’blowing up’ her phone that day and she was not speaking with him,” according to a report by Post Falls Police Officer Alex Clark.

When she pulled over, Brodwater forced her into his vehicle, drove her to his house and kept her there for six hours against her will, police said.

Brodwater is a former Coeur d’Alene Police reservist. He had worked for the county sheriff’s office from 2001-11 and had his Idaho police certification revoked in 2013. “He more than anyone would understand the ramifications and seriousness of violating (the no-contact order),” Detective John Mason wrote.

District Judge Scott Wayman did not set a jury trial date, but unless the defendant waives his right to a speedy trial, the court has six months from Brodwater’s March indictment to have a trial. The trial will likely be set between July and September, according to Wayman’s office.

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Information from: Coeur d’Alene Press, https://www.cdapress.com