The owner of a local construction company who was involved in a hit and run near Community Medical Center and then led police and sheriff's deputies up Reserve, out Highway 93 to Lolo, and then up Highway 12 where he crashed his vehicle, appeared in Missoula Justice Court in Friday afternoon.

Shayne Spence, 46, was charged with felony criminal endangerment, along with misdemeanors including eluding a peace officer, violating an order of protection, reckless driving and a first DUI. Deputy County Attorney Matt Bloom asked Judge Marie Anderson for $10,000 bail.

"Your honor, the state is concerned that the defendant is a danger to the community," Bloom said. "He has threatened to harm himself in the past. He drove extremely dangerously into oncoming traffic and then took a bunch of Tylenol. He has 10 speeding convictions."

Spence was also accused of violating an order of protection that led to the initial hit and run, and his decision to take a near-fatal dose of Tylenol. He ran his full-sized Chevrolet pickup truck off the road just outside Lolo, and deputies were forced to use pepper spray to subdue him.

Spence informed Judge Anderson that he would be retaining the law firm of Datsopoulos, McDonald and Lind to represent him.

Judge Anderson set bail at $5,000. Spence bonded out of the Missoula County Jail, and will appear in court again on March 17.

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