Leon Messerly 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 Missoula, on October 15, 2009, before U.S. District Judge Sam E. Haddon, LEON MESSERLY, a 48-year-old resident of Harlem, appeared for sentencing. MESSERLY was sentenced to a term of:
- Prison: 50 months
- Special Assessment: $100
- Supervised Release: 3 years
MESSERLY was sentenced after having been found guilty at trial of assault with a dangerous weapon within the exterior boundaries of the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation. MESSERLY and the victim are both Indian persons.
Because there is no parole in the federal system, the "truth in sentencing" guidelines mandate that MESSERLY will likely serve all of the time imposed by the court. In the federal system, MESSERLY 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 Rebekah J. French prosecuted the case for the United States.
The investigation was a cooperative effort between the Fort Belknap Tribal Law Enforcement and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
