Hearing set for suspect facing multiple charges

A man accused of leading police on a chase from downtown Coeur d’Alene to Post Falls after failing to appear in court on a stalking charge will have a Dec. 10 preliminary hearing.

An earlier preliminary hearing for Jacob S. Frey, 37, who is in jail on $2 million bail, was scheduled for last week but it was postponed. A magistrate rescinded a psychological evaluation order for Frey, whose wild behavior in court had prompted review, and new counsel was appointed.

Frey is charged with four felonies including eluding police, two counts of aggravated battery, and first-degree stalking.

He was initially arrested Oct. 28 after being armed when he tried meeting a former girlfriend at the El Patio bar at Stateline, police said. A week before the meeting, Frey and the woman had broken up. Frey sent her a video of him shooting at the car of a mutual friend with an assault-style rifle, according to reports in court records.

Frey, who wore a bulletproof vest to the El Patio, was detained and deputies said Frey carried a loaded firearm, a collapsible baton, pepper spray, taser and pair of handcuffs.

He posted $100,000 bail and was released from jail, but a judge issued a warrant after Frey failed to appear in court to face stalking charges.

Instead, during the Nov. 7 court proceedings Frey was in the parking lot of the Coeur d’Alene Justice Building on Garden Way contacting attorneys via email.

Police noticed Frey’s silver GMC pickup truck in the parking lot and attempted to arrest Frey on the recently issued warrant. He led four deputies on a chase north on Northwest Boulevard. Attempts by police to stop the pickup truck using pursuit intervention (PIT) maneuvers failed.

Frey drove west on I-90 in the eastbound lane, and alongside the highway in the dirt, according to a report. After ramming at least one patrol car, Frey was eventually stopped and arrested in Post Falls, but because he refused to put his hands in the air and deputies thought he was armed or may have explosives in the cab, a K9 was released and Frey was taken into custody.

Deputies took a Barrett rifle, multiple magazines loaded with armor piercing rounds, tactical equipment and body armor from the pickup truck, reports show,

Since his arrest, Frey’s court antics have tested the patience of judges.

For more than 30 minutes in a first-appearance proceeding last month that normally lasts half as long, First District Magistrate Timothy Van Valin listened to Frey yell and berate prosecutors as, cuffed and wearing a straitjacket, Frey lay his head on the defense table, howled, shouted and whimpered before Van Valin had the defendant escorted from the courtroom.

Stalking and aggravated battery can carry penalties of between five and 15 years in prison, and felony eluding carries a license revocation of up to three years.