A Billings man admitted Thursday to holding a nurse against her will in an attempt to escape from police custody.
Colbey James Bradley pleaded guilty in Yellowstone County District Court to aggravated kidnapping. The 41-year-old was being treated in 2022 at Billings Clinic while an inmate at the Yellowstone County jail when he grabbed and threatened a nurse. A standoff ensued between himself and law enforcement, and ended with him being taken back into custody.
Coinciding with the criminal case filed against Bradley, the nurse he held hostage has filed a lawsuit against Yellowstone County alleging county government failed in its obligation keep Bradley restrained and monitored during the hospital visit. That lawsuit has culminated with a potential settlement between her and the county that could be finalized by the end of the month.
“Her (the nurse’s) intention with the lawsuit was making sure nobody has to go through what she did,” said John Heenan, one of the attorneys representing the nurse in the lawsuit.
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In May 2022, Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Office personnel brought Bradley to the Billings Clinic for medical care. He’d been booked into Yellowstone County Detention Facility earlier that day. Under the watch of a YSCO officer, Bradley was lying in a hospital bed with an IV in his arm. When a Billings Clinic nurse finished replacing that IV, Bradley grabbed her. Bradley brought his right hand to her throat, claiming to have a shank and demanded the officer let him go.
Bradley dragged the nurse out of the hospital room and toward a stairwell, and the officer saw he wasn’t armed with anything in his right hand. A melee ensued between the Bradley and the officer, with the nurse getting free. With the help of hospital security, the officer put Bradley in handcuffs. An investigating officer with the Billings Police Department noted scratches to the nurse's throat.
Yellowstone County prosecutors subsequently charged Bradley with aggravated kidnapping and two counts attempted escape from custody, alleging he tried to flee from law enforcement at the hospital and during the drive from the hospital back to jail. Bradley pleaded not guilty to all three counts.
Bradley, represented in court by Attorney Tyler Dugger, reached a plea agreement with prosecutors, entering his guilty plea in court Thursday. In exchange for admitting to aggravated kidnapping, the charges of attempted escape were dismissed. Prosecutors are currently recommending Bradley be sentenced to 40 years in prison, with 10 years suspended, but a sentencing date has yet to be scheduled.
In January 2023, the nurse filed a lawsuit against Yellowstone County, claiming the county was liable for Bradley’s actions as he was in the custody of YSCO. She also claimed the county was negligent in its oversight of Bradly while he was being treated at the hospital.
Speaking to the Gazette on Friday, Heenan said his client and the county had reached a settlement in principle. All that remains is for the two parties to agree to that settlement, he said, which includes monetary and non-monetary relief.
“We are both pleased with how the county responded to this lawsuit,” Heenan said.
An attorney representing Yellowstone County could not comment on the case as litigation is still ongoing. Yellowstone County Sheriff Mike Linder similarly could not comment while the case was still open, but did say YCSO has general procedures in place for law enforcement to follow when transported inmates from the jail to local hospitals.
Health care workers in the United States have faced a marked increase in violence during the past decade, particularly since 2020, according to data compiled the federal government and organizations representing health care workers. Those in the medical profession, especially nurses, are currently at a higher risk of violence than most other jobs in the U.S., per reports from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
The risk health care workers face has spurred federal legislation, with lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives proposing the SAVE Act, which would grant legal protections specifically for health care employees subjected to violence or intimidation. Another bill, one that would require health care and social service employers to create comprehensive workplace violence prevention plans, is currently making its way through the U.S. Senate.
In Montana, employees working in health care and social assistance reported the highest number of work-related injuries and illnesses out of all the industries in the state in 2022, according to the latest survey published by the Montana Department of Labor and Industry. That same year, medical and social workers had a non-fatal incidence rate of nearly five per 100 fulltime workers.
In October 2022, a woman eventually convicted of assault with a weapon and criminal endangerment brought a loaded handgun into Billings Clinic, frightening hospital staff members and instigating a standoff with police. That standoff ended with the woman shot twice; once by herself and once by a Billings Police officer.