Damm To Serve Five Years
Lee Harrison Damm of Culbertson was sentenced to serve five years with the Montana Department of Corrections during a sentencing hearing in district court on Wednesday, Dec. 18.
Damm made a guilty plea to the charge of sexual intercourse without consent as part of a plea agreement on Thursday, Dec. 12. As part of the plea agreement, Damm provided an account of what happened regarding the charge. He said he asked a girl, who he knew was underage, to come to Culbertson and drink with him. He said he then took the girl to his mother’s house and ended up having sex with the teen.
He was 24 and the victim was in her early teens at the time of the crime in August 2018.
District Judge David Cybulski sentenced Damm to five years with the Montana Department of Corrections. Another 10 years of the sentence consists of being suspended and time served.
Damm must complete phase one and phase two of the sexual offender treatment program before being released. He can complete phase three while he’s on probation.
Cybulski feels the sentence will give authorities more flexibility in helping Damm than a traditional prison sentence could. “It gives him five years to complete two programs,” the judge said.
Defense attorney Sally Kay Hickok said about her client, “He knows he’s done a very wrong crime. He’s indicated to me that he will work hard to get phases done.”
The plea agreement called for a sentence of 15 years with seven years suspended. Cybulski noted that he is limited in the number of years he can suspend a sentence. Damm was given credit for 861 days served.
Roosevelt County Attorney Austin Knudsen said, “This is a tough case for me. He’s clearly shown he’s a danger to the community and needs close supervision.”
Dr. Alice L. Hougardy, of the Montana Sex Offender Treatment Association, provided information regarding an evaluation of Damm.
Based on 12 widely-used tests, she said the defendant’s judgment is impaired by impulsive decision making. Risk factors include seeing people under the age of 18 of being capable to make decisions regarding sexual relations. His cognitive thinking errors include the objectification of women.
As far as sexual offender risks, Damm was described in the moderate to moderate high range.
Hougardy recommended Damm complete all three phases of the sexual offender program. He shouldn’t be allowed to be around children under the age of 18 until he finishes the first two phases of the program.
The maximum sentence for committing the crime of sexual intercourse without consent if the victim is a minor and at least four years younger than the defendant is 100 years in prison and a fine of $50,000. The sentence is required to be at least four years.
