Several defendants delivered not guilty pleas during their initial appearances in district court before district judge David Cybulski on Wednesday, Dec. 15. In two separate hearings, Amaris Mariscal-Walking Eagle made not guilty pleas to the counts of criminal possession of dangerous drugs and possession of drug paraphernalia. Maximum penalties for the criminal possession of dangerous drugs

A 23-year-old woman was killed on Tuesday, Dec. 14, when she was hit by a train in Wolf Point. The Wolf Point Police Department received notification of the incident at 8:13 p.m. Police were flagged down near the scene by witnesses. Family and friends have identified the victim as Taja Lilley. Her obituary appears on page six of this issue. The woman was struck by a passing freight train

By Bill Vander Weele Julian Shields, director of Fort Peck Tribal Health, said that efforts continue to get people vaccinated for COVID on the Fort Peck Reservation. Last week, Shields reported that 48 percent of tribal members are fully vaccinated. He noted free clinics take place each Tuesday at the Wolf Point Community Hall and Thursday at the Poplar Cultural Center. In addition,

Poplar’s wrestlers enjoyed a good amount of success during the CMR Holiday Classic held in Great Falls during the weekend. In the girls’ tournament, Poplar’s Angelina Escarcega captured top honors at 103 pounds. The freshman pinned Lewistown’s Rebecca Birdwell in 4:26 in the championship match. Escarcega earned a sudden victory over Glacier’s Brooke Yeadon in the semi-final round.

The Poplar Indians fell short in both of their conference basketball games in Harlem on Saturday, Dec. 18. Harlem’s boys edged the Indians by a 71-64 margin. Poplar trailed by only a 1612 margin after the opening quarter and 37-32 score at the half. The Indians closed the gap to 53-51 during the third quarter. Leading the Indians were Dennis Red Eagle and Delray Lilley with 16 points