The United States Attorney's Office announced that during a federal court session in Billings, on March 29, 2013, before Senior U.S. District Judge Jack D. Shanstrom, KINSEY N. MINER, a resident of Billings, appeared for sentencing. MINER was sentenced to a term of:
Prison: 18 months, consecutive to another sentence
Special Assessment: $200
Supervised Release: 3 years
MINER was sentenced in connection with her guilty plea to possession of a stolen firearm and transferring a firearm to felon.
In an Offer of Proof filed by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Ed Zink, the government stated it would have proved at trial the following:
During the evening hours of Jan. 14, 2012, a Yellowstone County Sheriff's deputy was dispatched to a residence to investigate a report that a man, identified here as Z.Z., was drinking alcohol, in violation of the terms of his felony probation. The deputy arrived at the residence and went inside to speak with Z.Z. Shortly after he made contact with Z.Z., Z.Z. pulled a firearm and began firing at the deputy at a distance of only a few feet. The deputy returned fire, striking Z.Z. multiple times. Z.Z. was transported to St. Vincent's Hospital in Billings where he died from his injuries.
Following the shooting, detectives transported all the witnesses to a separate residence to conduct interviews. When interviewed, MINER gave a detailed statement of the events leading up to the shooting at her home. MINER stated that she had provided Z.Z. with the firearm he used in the shooting. MINER said that in July or August of 2011, she stole the firearm from her grandmother's boyfriend. While visiting her grandmother in Clark, Wyoming, MINER learned that her grandmother's boyfriend had a large collection of firearms. Knowing that Z.Z. wanted a firearm, MINER called Z.Z. and asked him what kind of gun he wanted. Z.Z. had MINER describe the available firearms to him and he selected the Glock handgun. MINER took the firearm and provided it to Z.Z. at a later date.
MINER knew Z.Z. was a convicted felon, on probation, at the time she stole the gun and later when she provided it to Z.Z.
Because there is no parole in the federal system, the "truth in sentencing" guidelines mandate that MINER will likely serve all of the time imposed by the court. In the federal system, MINER does have the opportunity to earn a sentence reduction for "good behavior." However, this reduction will not exceed 15% of the overall sentence.
The investigation was a cooperative effort between the Yellowstone County Sheriff's Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
