The man accused of an attempted abduction and leading authorities on a chase ending at Pompey's Pillar pleaded not guilty Thursday to seven felony charges and three misdemeanors.
Terry Allen Smith, 34, made his first appearance in Yellowstone County District Court, where Judge Collette Davies set his bail at $1 million.
The 10 charges he's facing are related to kidnapping, drug possession, criminal endangerment and assault on law enforcement.
Smith is currently on parole and a registered violent offender with two felony escape convictions.
At the hearing, Smith said he used drugs a couple of days prior to the arraignment and it was “getting it out of his system.” He said that this did not affect his comprehension of the proceedings.
Smith was arrested Tuesday after he allegedly tried to kidnap a woman he didn't know in Lockwood, then fled law enforcement on Interstate 94 before he was stopped near Pompey's Pillar.
Court documents say that Smith was first spotted that day when he fled from a Billings Police Department officer who saw him spray-painting a maroon Subaru black at 10:49 a.m. Smith hit the officer's patrol car and continued driving away.
An hour later, deputies were called to the area of Yellowstone Trail and Dickie Road in Yellowstone County, where the victim said she was assaulted and nearly kidnapped.
She told authorities she was driving to her mother's house when she saw a maroon Subaru following her, according to court documents. The driver, whom she'd never seen before, waved at her, pulled beside her in oncoming traffic, then crashed into her front fender, according to court documents.
She told police she drove backward to try to escape but hit a tree. The driver of the Subaru then grabbed her and punched her repeatedly, she told authorities.
Another motorist drove by, and the victim said she jumped into his car and escaped. The man in the maroon Subaru gave chase, but they managed to escape by accelerating to a high speed. They gave a 911 dispatcher a description of the man while fleeing.
Around noon, a Yellowstone County deputy spotted the maroon Subaru turning east on the I-94 ramp and gave pursuit.
Court documents stated the suspect drove as fast as 110 miles per hour, forced oncoming motorists off the road in the wrong lane and tried to strike others head on.
The vehicle was finally disabled going the wrong way on I-94 after running over a spike strip placed by law enforcement.
The suspect, later identified as Smith, was tased and arrested after trying to flee from deputies on foot.
