In the early morning hours of May 11, 2026, a shooting on the 200 block of Dawn Drive in rural Columbia Falls, Montana, left 59-year-old resident Donald J. Schwindt dead. Deputies and city officers arrived after a 7:09 a.m. call reporting an assault with a weapon and found two people wounded after an exchange of gunfire. Medical personnel treated both, but Schwindt was pronounced dead at the scene; the other person was also injured and has not been publicly identified.

The Flathead County Sheriff’s Office is conducting an active investigation. Schwindt’s body was taken to the Montana State Crime Lab in Missoula for autopsy. As of late May 2026 no arrests or charges had been announced and the County Attorney’s Office was reviewing the case to decide if charges are warranted. Few further details have been released about what led to the fatal exchange of gunfire.

If anyone witnessed the shooting or has information about events on Dawn Drive that morning, please come forward to assist investigators.