FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, December 13, 2007
JOHN F. BIG LEGGINS SENTENCED IN U.S. DISTRICT COURT
Bill Mercer, United States Attorney for the District of Montana, announced today that during a federal court session in Great Falls, on December 13, 2007, before U.S. District Judge Sam E. Haddon, JOHN F. BIG LEGGINS, a 19-year-old resident of Frazer, appeared for sentencing. BIG LEGGINS was sentenced to a term of:
- Prison: 24 months
- Restitution: $22,273.11
- Supervised Release: 3 years
BIG LEGGINS was sentenced in connection with his guilty plea to arson.
In an Offer of Proof filed by the United States, the government stated it would have proved at trial the following:
In the early morning hours of June 14, 2006, fire officials and law enforcement responded to multiple structure fires in Frazer. These fires included a fire at a vacant house located on Flynn Avenue in Frazer and a fire in a 20 foot utility trailer located near the Frazer Public School.
On September 14, 2006, BIG LEGGINS was interviewed and confessed to starting the fire at the vacant residence on Flynn Avenue. BIG LEGGINS gave a handwritten statement in which he admitted that he and Evan Beston started the fire at the vacant house.
Beston pled guilty to federal charges and has been sentenced.
Because there is no parole in the federal system, the "truth in sentencing" guidelines mandate that BIG LEGGINS will likely serve all of the time imposed by the court. In the federal system, BIG LEGGINS does have the opportunity to earn a sentence reduction for "good behavior." However, this reduction will not exceed 15% of the overall sentence.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard A. Hosley prosecuted the case for the United States.
The investigation was a cooperative effort between the Fort Peck Tribes Criminal Investigation Division and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
