Man Sentenced On Felony Weapons Possession Charge

On May 15th, Steven Howe, 52, was sentenced in a Wyoming district court to 28 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to a charge of being a prohibited possessor of a firearm (18 U.S.C. 922(g)(1)). In August, 2004, Howe was arrested by Yellowstone rangers for DUI and driving with a suspended license. A Ruger .22 rifle was discovered by the rangers during the subsequent inventory of Howe’s impounded vehicle.  Through interviews and a review of Howe’s criminal history, special agent Dan Kirschner discovered that Howe obtained the rifle by conspiring with a friend to conduct a “straw purchase” and that Howe had also been convicted on a felony charge of eluding officers in Colorado. Special agent Bruce Applin served a search warrant at Howe’s residence in Bozeman and discovered additional evidence of gun and ammunition ownership. A subsequent grand jury indictment and arrest warrant led to Howe’s arrest last September by federal marshals and an NPS agent. He remained in custody pending the plea agreement and sentencing.