BOZEMAN — A status hearing was held on Thursday, July 11, 2024 for Christopher Wardle, who is accused of attacking and strangling his wife, who later died in a separate incident in February 2023.
Wardle was charged in Gallatin County with driving under the influence in June 2024, an offense prosecutors say should lead to revocation of the conditions of his bond.
During Thursday's hearing, Wardle was additionally accused of contacting a witness in the case via social media, along with the DUI charge and allegedly purchasing alcohol.
The presiding judge said the person Wardle contacted was not on the case's list of witnesses and therefore likely did not rise to the level of a compliance issue.
The judge reiterated terms of Wardle's bond—including random alcohol testing and not leaving the state—and set a hearing date for the petition to revoke his bond for Aug. 5, 2024.
(Earlier report, June 5, 2024)
BOZEMAN — Christopher Wardle appeared in Gallatin County Justice Court Wednesday morning, charged with a DUI and violating the terms of his release from a different case involving his wife.
Wardle is accused of attacking and strangling his wife, Catherine Sorenson, in January 2022. According to court documents, Wardle came home drunk, pulled Sorensen out of bed by her hair and allegedly beat her head against the ground several times.
He then allegedly took Sorensen's phone, broke it, and fled the scene. Sorensen was reportedly able to leave the house and get to a neighbor's, where police were contacted. According to court documents, when police arrived on scene, Sorensen was found with fresh blood and red markings on her neck.
According to Park County Sheriff Brad Bichler, Catherine Sorensen was 55 years old and from Bozeman. Sorenson worked as a teacher at St. Mary Catholic School in Livingston and taught fourth-grade and Pre-K to eighth-grade music.
Sorenson died in February 2023, a little over a year after the alleged incident, after being run over by a car in the area of Divide Creek Road in Park County. Wardle reportedly brought Sorensen to the emergency room in Livingston, and hospital staff called dispatch to report that she had been brought in deceased.
According to the Park County Attorney, the case is still being investigated.
Wardle is also tied to a recent case of dog hoarding. Allegedly, 58 dogs were living on Wardle’s property and were left in dire conditions after he was suddenly incarcerated.
In January 2024, Prairie Song Dog Rescue rescued the dogs, nursed most of them back to health, and got many of them adopted. In April 2024, Wardle sued the people involved with taking the dogs, claiming the dogs were being cared for and did not need to be rescued.
Wednesday morning in court, Wardle pleaded not guilty to a DUI. Prosecutors filed a motion to revoke his bail on the assault charge, and a hearing is set for July 9 at 9 a.m.
