Guilty Plea Filed In Felony Firearms Case

On Friday, November 6th, Steven Howe pled guilty in federal district court to one count of being in a felon in possession of a firearm, thereby precluding the necessity of a trial that had been set to start on November 10th. Howe’s last-minute plea followed a suppression hearing in which his attorney challenged the admissibility of several pieces of evidence, but lost the motion. Howe was originally arrested for driving in the park while under suspension in August of 2004. An inventory of his seized vehicle led to the discovery of a rifle and a follow-up investigation revealed that Howe was a convicted felon. A search warrant was then executed on Howe’s home in Bozeman by the park’s special response team, agents from the NPS and ATF, U.S. marshals, and Gallatin County officers. Additional evidence was found within the residence. Howe was then indicted and arrested. Special agents Dan Kirschner and David Barland-Liles were co-case agents and former law enforcement ranger Rick McAdam the arresting officer.