COEUR d’ALENE, Idaho — The Coeur d’Alene City Attorney Randy Adams, who serves at the pleasure of Mayor Woody McEvers and the city council, confirmed on Friday, April 18 that his office filed multiple misdemeanor charges against six men who were targeted by the Coeur d’Alene Police Department after it initiated an investigation into the events that occurred at the Republican Legislative Town Hall on February 22.
Two of the men facing charges said the city prosecutor’s office has not bothered to inform them directly and learned about the city’s criminal charges against them from news reports.
The city attorney’s office informed Kootenai Journal that the following misdemeanor charges in relation to the events on February 22 were filed on April 17; however, the applicable statutes and city codes were not provided and the First Judicial District court system had no accessible record of the charges at the time of this publication:
- Battery
- False Imprisonment
- Security Agent Uniform Violation
- Security Agent Duty Violation
Last June, the Coeur d’Alene City Council amended the city’s security agent licensure code at the request of Coeur d’Alene Police Chief Lee White. At the time, strong objections were raised by two security firms, Lear Asset Management and Gates Security.
“This law restricts residents and businesses the right to protect themselves and their property without a prior notice, review, and approval of the city police,” stated Wagenseller, founder of Gates Security, at the June 18 council meeting. “This overreaching law requires certain persons to wear distinctive emblems of the city’s choosing in a crass and belittling manner. These persons are then to carry papers on them with identification that are to be surrendered to the city police at any time to justify their presence and actions in the city.”
One of the provisions adopted by the council included a change that required all security agents to wear uniform shirts marked with the word “SECURITY” in lettering at least one inch high on the front and no less than four inches high on the back. While violation of the code can result in a revocation of the license, there is no provision that allows violators to be charged criminally. It is unclear at this time how the city intends to establish the elements of a crime that is not on the state or city books.
“Because this matter is now an active prosecution, the Coeur d’Alene City Attorney’s Office must decline to comment any further and will, instead, let the court documents speak for themselves once publicly available,” stated Adam’s staff in an email.
How the city’s municipal code will be enforced against churches with security teams, private individuals with personal security details, and club bouncers remains unknown at this time.
When Kootenai Journal first became aware of the city’s criminal investigation relating to the February 22 event, Adams was asked if his office recognized the authority of the sheriff as defined in Idaho code 31-2202 and whether his office believed a duly-elected and sworn sheriff can ever be considered off-duty.
“The statute speaks for itself,” Adams replied and stated that whether or not a sheriff is ever off-duty is “a matter for the county to determine.”
The charges filed in this matter indicate that Adams has made an independent determination and does not appear to recognize the authority of Sheriff Robert “Bob” Norris who directed the removal of Teresa Borrenpohl for disrupting the assembly. Borrenpohl is a Precinct Captain for the Kootenai County Democratic Central Committee (KCDCC) who came to the Republican town hall and proceeded to shout insults toward the stage, including an accusation against State Senator Phil Hart for “stealing from public lands.” A slew of other Democrats also came to the Republican event, including KCDCC Chairman Evan Koch and fellow Precinct Captain Megan Dardis-Kunz. Video evidence indicated Dardis-Kunz attempted to intervene during the removal of Borrenpohl.
Chairman Brent Regan of the Kootenai County Republican Central Committee (KCRCC), recently authored an editorial titled “The Truth Will Keep You Free” in which he contends that the investigation conducted by Detective Daniel Haley disregarded several Idaho laws.
“We know the Coeur d’Alene Police Department (CDAPD) didn’t pursue the Democratic hecklers for conspiracy, disturbing the peace, trespass, resisting arrest, or battery,” Regan stated in his editorial. “Charges were dropped. Instead, CDAPD investigated the event organizers, sheriff, and security, listing the disruptors as ‘victims’.”
Regan also pointed out that statements in Haley’s Incident Report dated April 4, 2025, contradict statements in his affidavit from March 6.
“Video supports the original statement: Sheriff Norris DID direct security to remove Teresa,” Regan asserts. “This isn’t minor. It’s a material difference that could wrongly criminalize innocent people.”
This publication previously laid out the applicable Idaho codes as they pertain to the events of February 22 in an editorial published on February 26.
This is a developing story and updates will be provided as events unfold.
Editor’s Note: The men’s names and individual charges will not be published by Kootenai Journal until the information is publicly available. Under the U.S. Constitution, all American citizens are entitled to due process and are presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
