A Cascade County deputy arrived at 77 Wexford Lane around 4:45 p.m. on Feb. 23.

He was awaiting another deputy with a physical copy of the paperwork to execute a search warrant.

Within about 10 minutes, shots had been fired.

The deputy was shot in the shoulder, the man he made contact with was dead.

Sheriff Jesse Slaughter and County Attorney Josh Racki said during a Feb. 24 press conference that the deputy was at the property, west of Great Falls off McIver Road, to execute a search warrant in relation to a criminal investigation of Pamela Polejewski, the property owner.

Deputies were investigating her for criminal contempt for possessing animals on her property, in violation of her conditions of release from a 2020 felony and misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty.

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Slaughter said that the deputy who was later shot arrived at 77 Wexford around 4:45 p.m. and interacted with Michael Lee Hanson, who also lists that address as his residence.

At some point during that interaction, Hanson brandished a firearm, causing the deputy to also brandish his weapon.

Shots were exchanged.

The deputy was shot in the shoulder. He was transported by ambulance to the emergency room where he was treated and released around 8 p.m. Feb. 23, Slaughter said.

Hanson was killed on scene.

The injured deputy is on administrative leave for his injury and also while the Montana Department of Justice’s Division of Criminal Investigation investigates the incident, which is standard practice in officer involved shootings, Slaughter said.

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The Lewis and Clark County sheriff’s office is acting as the coroner in the case.

Polejewski was charged in May 2020 with a felony count of aggravated animal cruelty; and three felony and one misdemeanor count of cruelty to animals, according to the search warrant unsealed and provided by Racki.

The charges stem from a May 6 fire at 77 Wexford Lane when deputies responded. A trailer had burned to the ground and some animals had been killed in the fire.

While on scene, CCSO deputies saw goats, dogs and horses running lose on the property.

They contacted Polejewski, who was removing animals, to include kittens, puppies, dogs and a ferret, from a trailer near the fire.

The camper was filthy, according to the search warrant, and deputies noticed a dog between blankets, tarps and bags, which Polejewski told deputies was dying and very heavy. Deputies also saw her remove a “sickly looking dog from the camper that had fluid coming from its head,” according to the search warrant.

She told deputies that she didn’t want the Department of Livestock inspectors assistance with horses loose on the property and they observed a cage so full of kittens the animals didn’t have room to move.

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Deputies noticed dogs in unsuitable kennels who didn’t appear to have food and most were living in mud, as well as ducks and geese that didn’t appear to have feed. Horses and goats were running loose and some horses didn’t have access to water, according to the search warrant.

“It was clear to law enforcement that the property was one involving animal hoarding. Pamela has a long history of animal hoarding in Cascade County,” according to the search warrant.

The day after the fire, deputies executed a search warrant on the property with a veterinarian and personnel from the Great Falls Animal Shelter.

The veterinarian found a mini horse with deformities for lack of foot care; a deceased bloated dog with a necrotic mouth in a trailer that also contained a cage of kittens, a pot-bellied pig and puppies that were living in their own feces, with no food or water, according to the search warrant.

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The vet euthanized another dog with a severely disfigured face due to infection.

All animals were seized be evaluated and receive proper care, according to the search warrant.

Inside what appeared to be Polejewski’s residence, deputies found more animals in cramped and unclear living quarters without food or water. A number of cats with eye infection or no eyes were found, as well as birds and a rooster with torn back tail feathers, according to the search warrant.

In total, 172 animals were found and seized from the property, according to the search warrant. The animals that appeared most endangered, about 25-30 of varying species, were taken to the city animal shelter.

A week after the fire and Polejewski was criminally charged, she filed a civil complaint against the county claiming a “litany of constitutional violations,” including trespass, unreasonable search and seizure, malicious prosecution” and more.

The district court dismissed her claims and the Montana Supreme Court upheld that decision.

Since filing her first complaint in 2020, she filed addition claims and appeals.

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Cascade County asked the state’s high court to declare her a vexatious litigant, a request the court granted in November 2023, writing, “each step of the way, this court and the district court have gone to great lengths to afford Polejewski due process, accommodate her lack of legal expertise as a pro se litigant, and decipher her arguments in an effort to discern whether they have any merit. While we have previously declined to declare Polejewski a vexatious litigant, we note that ‘[h]owever much we desire to keep the courts open to all persons seeking to adjust their rights, duties, and responsibilities, we must also take into account the effect that [the litigant’s] actions bring on other parties to [their] suits.” Considering Polejewski’s history of duplicative litigation, we deem it appropriate to declare her a vexatious litigant and place parameters on her access to the courts of this state going forward.”

The Montana Supreme Court ordered, that Polejewski was a vexatious litigant and before she’s allowed to initiate any legal proceeding or file and pleading in any court in the state regarding the forfeiture and disposal of the animals recovered from her property, or the conduct of any government agency related to the case, “she is required to obtain pre-filing approval from the court in which she seeks to file. The court may prohibit any such filing upon a determination that the claims asserted are harassing, frivolous, or legally not cognizable. Only upon issuance of an order granting Polejewski permission to file may she file the proposed pleading or document. We also caution Polejewski that any person who would attempt to file a document with a court on her behalf must be licensed to practice law in Montana.”

In January, a neighboring property owner called CCSO to report dogs barking on Polejewski’s property.

Deputies conducted some surveillance on the property.

On Feb. 23, an off-duty deputy was shopping at Wal-Mart and saw Polejewski purchasing animal food.

The deputy was familiar with Polejewski and the condition that she was prohibited from possessing animals and notified a deputy on her case.

That deputy went to Wal-Mart and viewed the video footage of her purchasing cat food and obtained the receipts, which showed she’s purchased 41 pounds of cat food and 14 pounds of cat litter.

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The deputy contacted the neighboring property owner who said Polejewsi was on the property this week.

Another deputy conducted surveillance on the property on Feb. 23 and saw Polejewski carrying a large bag and what appeared to be empty cat litter containers. The deputy saw a cat on top of a shed on the property.

Deputies used that information to apply for and obtain the search warrant that was in the process of being served when the deputy was shot on Feb. 23.

Racki said his office would continue to prosecute the case against Polejewski as DCI investigates the shooting.

Slaughter said that an autopsy will be conducted and a coroner’s inquest will be scheduled, which is a requirement for any officer involved shooting.