Here’s what’s happening in the Montana federal criminal courts

DOJ Press

The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced that the following persons were arraigned or appeared this week before U.S. Magistrate judges on indictments handed down by the Grand Jury or on criminal complaints. The charging documents are merely accusations and defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty:

Appearing in Missoula before Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris and pleading not guilty on Oct. 4 was:

Joseph Daniel Fox, 29, of Kalispell, on charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and heroin, possession with intent to distribute meth and heroin and possession of a firearm by a user or addict. If convicted of the most serious crime, Fox faces a mandatory minimum five years to 40 years in prison, a $5 million fine and at least four years to life of supervised release. Fox was detained pending further proceedings. The Flathead County Sheriff’s Office, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the FBI’s Montana Regional Violent Crime Task Force investigated the case. PACER case reference. 21-44.

Appearing in Missoula for an initial appearance on a criminal complaint before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen L. DeSoto on Oct. 7 was:


Carlos Guatimea Aguirre, 35, of Fresno, California and Missoula, on charges of prohibited person in possession of firearms and ammunition and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl. If convicted of the most serious crime, Aguirre faces a mandatory minimum 10 years to life in prison, a $10 million fine and at least five years of supervised release. Aguirre was detained pending further proceedings. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Missoula Police Department investigated the case. PACER case reference. 21-100.


Appearing in Great Falls before U.S. Magistrate Judge John T. Johnston and pleading not guilty on Oct. 5 was:

Brittany Michele Darnell, 30, of Great Falls, on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. If convicted of the most serious crime, Darnell faces a maximum 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release on the fraud counts and a mandatory minimum two years in prison, a $250,000 fine and one year of supervised release consecutive to any other sentence. Darnell was released pending further proceedings. The FBI and Great Falls Police Department investigated the case. PACER case reference. 21-58.

Mickey James Buchholz, 35, of Great Falls, on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. If convicted of the most serious crime, Buchholz faces a maximum 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release on the fraud counts and a mandatory minimum two years in prison, a $250,000 fine and one year of supervised release consecutive to any other sentence. Buchholz was released pending further proceedings. The FBI and Great Falls Police Department investigated the case. PACER case reference. 21-58.

Michael James Burke, 42, of Browning, on charges of aggravated sex abuse of a child and abusive sexual contact. If convicted of the most serious crime, Burke faces a maximum life in prison, a $250,000 fine and five years of supervised release. Burke was released with conditions, including home detention, pending further proceedings. The FBI and the Fort Peck Tribe investigated the case. PACER case reference. 21-62.

Appearing in Billings before U.S. Magistrate Judge Timothy J. Cavan and pleading not guilty on Oct. 5 was:

Amanda Christine Brown, 33, a transient, on charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute meth and possession with intent to distribute meth. If convicted of the most serious crime, Brown faces a mandatory minimum 10 years to life in prison, a $10 million fine and at least five years of supervised release. Brown was detained pending further proceedings. The Eastern Montana High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force investigated the case. PACER case reference. 21-25.

Appearing on Oct. 7 was:

Karrie Lynn Madill, 51, of Billings, on charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute meth and possession with intent to distribute meth. If convicted of the most serious crime, Madill faces a mandatory minimum five years to 40 years in prison, a $5 million fine and at least four years of supervised release. Madill was released pending further proceedings. The FBI’s Western Transnational Organized Crime Task Force and Eastern Montana High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force investigated the case. PACER case reference. 21-74.

Appearing on Oct. 8 for an initial appearance on a criminal complaint was:

Anthony Ray Morgan, 32, of Billings, on charges of possession with intent to distribute meth. If convicted of the most serious crime, Morgan faces a mandatory minimum 10 years to life in prison, a $10 million fine and at least five years of supervised release. Morgan was detained pending further proceedings. The Eastern Montana High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force investigated the case. PACER case reference. 21-61.

The progress of cases may be monitored through the U.S. District Court Calendar and the PACER system. To establish a PACER account, which provides electronic access to review documents filed in a case, please visit http://www.pacer.gov/register.html. To access the District Court’s calendar, please visit https://ecf.mtd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/PublicCalendar.pl.

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