Abortion clinic vandal pleads guilty in deal

A 25-year-old Columbia Falls man pleaded guilty April 2 to breaking into and vandalizing the All Families Healthcare clinic last year, putting Kalispell’s only abortion provider out of business since that time.

Zachary Klundt apologized in court to the clinic’s owner and admitted to having drug and alcohol problems. He also addressed his position on abortion.

“It is true that I am pro-life,” he said, “but that means more than just being opposed to something.”

Klundt pleaded guilty to felony counts of burglary, criminal mischief and theft before Flathead District Court Judge Ted Lympus. As part of a plea deal, one count of attempted burglary and two counts of felony theft were dismissed.

“I am so sorry for the burdens I have brought on you,” Klundt told the clinic’s owner.

Prosecutors recommended five years in Montana State Prison. Klundt is scheduled for sentencing on June 11.

Klundt’s appearance was prefaced with acknowledgments that he was there to accept responsibility for the destruction of the clinic and that his bouts with medication and alcoholism were not admissible defenses.

But his testimony went into depth on those issues. Klundt mentioned medication he took for various mental illnesses and a history of alcohol abuse. He said he had broken into several area businesses, including the clinic, in an effort to find drugs.

Klundt was released from the county jail in October so he could enter a 60-day in-patient residential treatment program at The Wilderness Center, west of Kalispell. He told the court he has been sober for nearly 13 months.

According to court records, Kalispell police responded to a report of a break-in at Bob’s Bail Bonds on March 4, 2014, and found Klundt there with a loaded handgun. A subsequent search of his home revealed several boxes of medical files and supplies from All Families Healthcare.

Klundt broke into the clinic sometime on the night of March 3. A clinic employee arrived the next morning to find a broken window next to the back door. Damage to the clinic was significant. Art, furniture and medical supplies were destroyed, as well as the sewer and plumbing systems. Files were strewn around, and a fire extinguisher had been sprayed throughout the office.

Two charges of felony theft were later added to the abortion clinic charges. Klundt was charged with stealing tools from a log home business on Highway 40 and stealing firearms and a tablet computer from a home near Lake Blaine.