Great Falls Man Sentenced for Brandishing a Firearm

HELENA - The United States Attorney’s Office announced today that 29-year-old Branden Miesmer of Great Falls was sentenced to 120 months in prison, 5 years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment, to run consecutive to Miesmer’s state conviction for deliberate homicide.  Additionally, the defendant received $1,000 in fines for contempt of court. Senior U.S. District Judge Charles C. Lovell presided over the hearing.  

During the early morning hours of September 7, 2015, after committing a murder in Great Falls, Miesmer fled in a car reaching speeds of more than 110 mph on the interstate just north of Helena.  Officers pursued Miesmer, but lost sight of his car.  They found Miesmer’s car stopped next to another car at the intersection of Lincoln Road and Hauser Dam Road.  Miesmer was removing people from a smaller station wagon located next to his car.  Miesmer then quickly got in the new car and drove north. 

According to the driver of the carjacked vehicle, he had stopped at the intersection when Miesmer pulled up, got out of his car, and approached the driver’s side door with a black semi-automatic pistol.  Miesmer pointed the gun at the driver’s face and demanded that he get out of the car.  Miesmer pulled the car door open and yanked the driver out of the car while the driver yelled for his kids to get out.  The defendant later acknowledged his use of the firearm to the police in order to obtain the car. 

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Betley and investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Great Falls Police Department, and the Helena Police Department.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.   Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.