Diana McClammy of Great Falls has filed a lawsuit against the City of Great Falls, the state of Montana, and several others, claiming that she was wrongfully charged for causing the death of her partner.
Court documents state that in May 2015, McClammy called police to report that she was being physically abused by her partner at the time.
The documents say that officers Thomas Halloran and Brian Tovoson responded to the Leland Apartments.
McClammy says they were dismissive of her claims, and reported that she was intoxicated.
Court documents state the officers cleared the scene, but about an hour later they were called again, this time by the apartment manager.
Officer Tovoson arrived and McClammy told him that she had accidentally stabbed her partner.
Court documents say after the arrest, she told officers about the abuse and that the stabbing was self defense.
McClammy was charged with deliberate homicide, but the charge was dismissed in February 2017.
The lawsuit claims that the Great Falls Police Department did not investigate her claims of self defense.
There has been no response filed by the defendants as of Friday afternoon.
- Negligent homicide charge against McClammy has been dismissed
- McClammy charged with negligent homicide for stabbing death of her boyfriend
(MAY 26, 2015) The Great Falls woman who charged with killing her boyfriend Louis Dymon on Friday, is scheduled to make her initial court appearance on Tuesday afternoon. Diana Jo McClammy, 52, is charged with deliberate homicide for the stabbing death.
Court documents state that Great Falls police officers responded to a domestic disturbance at McClammy’s residence at the Leland Apartments on 1st Avenue North at 7:32 p.m., about an hour before the stabbing was reported. McClammy told officers that Dymon, 53, had assaulted her.
McClammy appeared “very intoxicated," and "somewhat inconsistent" in her statements, according to one of the officers. Officers found no evidence that she had been assaulted. The police report says Dymon was not intoxicated and appeared calm, and denied the accusation.
The officers wanted to advise McClammy and Dymon to separate for the night, but when an officer went to the hallway to tell McClammy, she could not be found.
Officers responded to a reported stabbing at McClammy’s apartment at 8:46 p.m.
Court documents say the apartment manager called 911 after McClammy told him she’d stabbed her boyfriend, and asked the manager to call for help. Responding officers found Dymon lying on the floor of the apartment, with McClammy standing nearby.
Court documents say McClammy told officers that she had stabbed him, but that he was faking the severity of his injury. Police said that Dymon was "unresponsive and gasping for air," but they did not immediately see his injury. McClammy directed the officers to pull down the collar of Dymon’s shirt; officers then found what appeared to be a stab wound on his upper-left chest.
Investigators found a bloody knife in the kitchen, along with signs of a struggle, including a broken ceramic pot, according to court reports. Dymon was taken by ambulance to Benefis hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Police are continuing to investigate McClammy’s claim that she acted in self-defense. Prosecutors have requested that bond for McClammy be set at $250,000.
