The United States Attorney's Office announced that during a federal court session in Billings, on July 19, 2013, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Carolyn S. Ostby, the following individual was arraigned:
KURT LEE WHITLING, a 50-year-old resident of Billings, appeared on charges of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. He is currently detained. If convicted of these charges, WHITLING faces possible penalties of a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison and could be sentenced to life, a $10,000,000 fine, and 5 years supervised release on each of the two counts. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph E. Thaggard is the prosecutor for the United States. The investigation was conducted by the Drug Task Force.
The defendant pled not guilty to the charges.
The charge, an indictment, information or complaint, is merely an accusation and all persons named as defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. A pre-trial conference and a trial date will be set and the United States will be required to prove the allegations set forth in the indictment beyond a reasonable doubt.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
