Bill Mercer, United States Attorney for the District of Montana, announced today that during a federal court session in Great Falls, on August 18, 2008, before U.S. District Judge Sam E. Haddon, KENNETH HELGESON, a 61-year-old resident of Dodson, appeared for sentencing. HELGESON was sentenced to a term of:

• Prison: 57 months

• Special Assessment: $100

• Supervised Release: 3 years

HELGESON was sentenced after having been found guilty during a 2-day trial of involuntary manslaughter.

Because there is no parole in the federal system, the "truth in sentencing" guidelines mandate that HELGESON will likely serve all of the time imposed by the court. In the federal system, HELGESON 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 Vince Carroll prosecuted the case for the United States.

The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.