Informational: Federal Court arraignments

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 Aug. 17 was:

Timothy Michael Koop, 61, of Box Elder, and Kelli Jo Lamere, 29, of Box Elder, on charges of conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and distribution of fentanyl. If convicted of the most serious crime, the defendants face a maximum 20 years in prison, a $1 million fine and three years of supervised release. Both defendants were released pending further proceedings. The FBI, the Tri-Agency Task Force and the Drug Enforcement Administration investigated the case. PACER case reference. 21-51.

Appearing in Missoula before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen L. DeSoto and pleading not guilty on Aug. 17 was:

Zachary Jon Lindsay, 38, of Kalispell, on charges of prohibited person in possession of a firearm, possession of unregistered firearm and possession of firearm with obliterated serial number. If convicted of the most serious crime, Lindsay faces a maximum 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. Lindsay was detained pending further proceedings. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Kalispell Police Department investigated the case. PACER case reference. 21-36.

Appearing on Aug. 19 was:

Terry Joseph Jette, 56, of Anaconda, on charges of attempted coercion and enticement of a child. If convicted of the most serious crime, Jette faces a mandatory minimum 10 years to life in prison, a $250,000 fine and at least five years to life of supervised release. Jette was detained pending further proceedings. The FBI, Missoula County Sheriff’s Office and Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force investigated the case. PACER case reference. 21-21.

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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