A 67-year-old Onalaska woman is being held in the Lewis County Jail on $500,000 bail after deputies responding to a protection order violation found her holding an “AR-15 style rifle” that she initially refused to drop.
“She actually began to raise an AR style rifle toward the officers,” Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer said in Lewis County Superior Court on Monday. “Fortunately, the officers did not fire their service weapons at the defendant.”
Instead, the deputies fired a “less lethal round” and the woman eventually complied.
Denise Michelle Dibble now faces a slew of criminal charges.
Among them are two Class B felonies, residential burglary and theft of a firearm, both punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine. In addition, she faces two Class C felonies, second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm and telephone harassment (domestic violence), each punishable by up to five years in prison and a $10,000 fine. She has also been charged with violation of a court order (domestic violence), a gross misdemeanor.
During Dibble’s first appearance on the charges in Lewis County Superior Court Monday, Meyer said she will face additional charges after contacting the victim from the Lewis County Jail.
Meyer asked for Superior Court Judge Joely Yeager to set bail at half a million dollars.
“The defendant is simply not following the court’s order,” he said, noting she violated conditions of release on a District Court matter. “She does not care what the court has to say.”
Yeager said Dibble “checked all the boxes the court needs to consider” in agreeing to set her bail at $500,000.
According to an affidavit of probable cause filed by the Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office, sheriff’s office deputies on Oct. 16 responded to a complaint regarding violation of a protection order within the boundaries of Lewis County, though court documents do not include a city or address.
The reporting party indicated there was an active protection order that prevented Dibble, who court documents identify as his wife, from coming to the residence, but that she was currently there in violation of the order.
“The man also reported that his wife, Denise Dibble, the defendant herein, had threatened to kill him if law enforcement responded and indicated she was not going back to jail and would have a shootout with the police,” the affidavit states.
While the protection order was verified, the man also admitted to inviting Dibble to his home the night before.
“But the defendant began drinking and acting erratically,” the affidavit states. “The man also indicated that he kept two firearms in the house and noticed those firearms were now missing. The defendant admitted to (the man) that she had hidden the firearms and would reveal their location only if he gave her money. The fact the firearms were missing added to (the man’s) fear, as well as the defendant's drinking.”
Deputies were unsuccessful in contacting Dibble from outside the home when they arrived at the scene, the affidavit states.
“Law enforcement entered and found the defendant in a back bedroom holding an AR-15 style rifle,” the affidavit states. “A less lethal round was fired because the defendant refused commands to drop the rifle. Eventually, the defendant complied and she was taken into custody. Post-Miranda, the defendant admitted to going to the residence in violation of the order. She denied threatening to kill (the man), but admitted indicating she would rather be shot than go back to jail. The defendant also admitted to demanding $5000 from (the man) but indicated she was unsure where she hid the guns.”
Dibble has current cases pending in Lewis County District court, including for malicious mischief, fourth-degree assault and violation of a protection order, all domestic violence charges.
As of Tuesday morning, she remained held in the Lewis County jail.
