Woman charged with threatening Gov. Doug Burgum’s life has criminal history, record of mental illness

BISMARCK — Jody Lynn Kuntz is charged with calling 911 and telling the dispatcher that she was at the state Capitol and Gov. Doug Burgum’s “tenure was at its end.”

Eight days later, on Feb. 20, Kuntz left two phone messages at the governor’s office threatening to hang Burgum in Medora, according to court records.

Then, on March 15, Kuntz called an employee of the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality and “made a statement indicating that the Governor should meet his demise,” according to an affidavit by Trooper Steven Iden of the North Dakota Highway Patrol.

Once again, on March 20, Kuntz left a phone message with an employee of the Department of Public Instruction stating that “it was the Governor’s final day and he should flee,” according to Iden’s statement.

Kuntz, a 46-year-old resident of South Heart, was charged with one count of harassment, a misdemeanor punishable by up to 360 days in jail, a fine of $3,000 or both. The criminal complaint, dated April 27, lists 11 state witnesses against Kuntz.

Her defense lawyer said Kuntz could be mentally ill and asked for a psychiatric evaluation at the State Hospital.

“An issue has arisen as to Ms. Kuntz’s criminal responsibility and fitness to proceed as a result of a mental disease or defect existing at the time of the alleged criminal conduct in this matter,” defense lawyer Steven Balaban wrote. “Ms. Kuntz has a history of psychiatric conditions and treatment.”

Balaban added that he has “concerns that these conditions may have been a factor in the underlying offense and certainly may affect her ability to comprehend and assist in her own defense.”

South Central District Judge Bobbi Weiler on June 23 granted Balaban’s motion and ordered Kuntz to be evaluated at the State Hospital for criminal responsibility and her competency to stand trial.

Law enforcement officials in western North Dakota have cited Kuntz as an example of how untreated or poorly managed mental illnesses impose a significant burden on the criminal justice system, clogging court calendars and jail cells, which have become warehouses for the mentally ill.

The Forum reported that as of November 2021, Kuntz had been charged with at least 22 crimes over the past decade

, including seven felonies in North Dakota and another 15 criminal charges in South Dakota.

In multiple North Dakota cases in the summer of 2021, Kuntz was ordered to submit to psychiatric evaluations at the State Hospital to determine her criminal responsibility and competence to stand trial. In each case, she was found able to assist in her defense and capable of criminal responsibility.

Kuntz has a history of being accused of violent crimes and dangerous conduct, according to court records.

In 2016, she was charged in Dunn County with aggravated assault, felonious restraint and felony criminal mischief in a case in which a deputy sheriff found her trying to enter a residence after breaking a window.

The assault charge involved the occupant of the house, who suffered four broken ribs and internal injuries. The charges later were dismissed after Kuntz agreed to pay the victim’s medical bills and for damage to the property.

In another case in Dunn County, in 2018, Kuntz was charged with felony criminal mischief and criminal trespass.

The charges stemmed from an incident on Oct. 30, 2018, when law enforcement officers were called to an oil pad where Kuntz was trying to turn off pressure relief valves for four oil wells — actions that Dunn County Sheriff Gary Kuhn said posed a clear risk to public safety and caused an estimated $9,000 in damage.

“That could have caused an explosion,” he told The Dickinson Press. “That could have caused a massive leak. That could have caused problems.”

Kuhn had numerous dealings with Kuntz over the past 20 years in law enforcement as a sheriff’s deputy in Stark County and a state Bureau of Criminal Investigation officer before becoming the Dunn County sheriff.

“She’s a very intelligent woman,” Kuhn told The Forum in 2021. “(She) has a mental health problem. It would be amazing to find out what she’s capable of if she didn’t have those issues.”

The Forum was unable to reach Kuntz, who was booked into the Southwest Multi-County Corrections Center in Dickinson on June 9 on multiple charges, including probation violations and driving under suspension.

Mike Nowatzki, a spokesman for Burgum, declined to comment. “Regarding the Kuntz case,” he said, “it’s our standard practice not to publicly discuss the governor’s security or comment on pending litigation.”

Patrick Springer first joined The Forum in 1985. He covers a wide range of subjects including health care, energy and population trends. Email address: pspringer@forumcomm.com
Phone: 701-367-5294