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 Great Falls before U.S. Magistrate Judge John T. Johnston and pleading not guilty on June 8 was:
Hugo Gutierrez Rodriguez, also known as Victor and as Juice, 41, of Yakima, Washington, on charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, possession with intent to distribute controlled substances and distribution of fentanyl. If convicted of the most serious crime, Rodriguez faces a mandatory minimum 10 years to life in prison, a $10 million fine and five years of supervised release. Rodriguez was detained pending further proceedings. The FBI, Tri-Agency Task Force, Drug Enforcement Administration, Rocky Boy’s Police Department and Idaho State Police investigated the case. PACER case reference. 22-31.
Appearing on June 7 was:
Joshua James Burshia, 41, of Brockton, on charges of aggravated sexual abuse and sexual abuse of a minor. If convicted of the most serious crime, Burshia faces life in prison, a $250,000 fine and at least five years to life of supervised release. Burshia was detained pending further proceedings. The FBI and Fort Peck Law Enforcement Services investigated the case. PACER case reference. 22-39.
Aaron Ramirez Espinoza, 36, of Yakima, Washington, on charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances and possession with intent to distribute controlled substances. If convicted of the most serious crime, Espinoza faces a mandatory minimum of five years to 40 years in prison, a $5 million fine and at least four years of supervised release. Espinoza was detained pending further proceedings. The FBI and Great Falls Police Department investigated the case. PACER case reference. 22-40.
Laval John Bigleggins, 36, of Wolf Point, on charges of involuntary manslaughter. If convicted of the most serious crime, Bigleggins faces a maximum of eight years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. Bigleggins was detained pending further proceedings. The FBI, Fort Peck Law Enforcement Services, Roosevelt County Sheriff’s Office and Montana Highway Patrol investigated the case. PACER case reference. 22-30.
Trevor Birdsbill, 32, of Wolf Point, on charges of aggravated sexual abuse. If convicted of the most serious crime Birdsbill faces a maximum of life in prison, a $250,000 fine and five years to life of supervised release. Birdsbill was released pending further proceedings. The FBI and Fort Peck Law Enforcement Services investigated the case. PACER case reference. 22-38.
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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