The trial of a 50-year-old Columbia Falls youth hockey coach accused of raping three young boys between 2019 and 2021 in Flathead County and Butte is now underway in Butte-Silverbow County District Court.

Jami Leslie James in March 2023 pleaded not guilty to four felony counts of sexual intercourse without consent in Flathead County District Court. Separately, he pleaded not guilty to two felony counts of sexual intercourse without consent in Butte-Silver Bow District Court in April 2023. The cases in May 2024 were consolidated to Butte-Silver Bow County where Judge Robert J. Whelan is presiding.

James faces six rape charges, four of which were originally charged in Flathead County where he was accused of sexually assaulting two 8-year-old players at a hockey camp in 2020. He faces two a

See Full Page