Poaching suspect sentenced on federal charges

By JIM MANN

The Daily Inter Lake

A Plains man who was charged earlier this week with poaching offenses was sentenced Thursday in Missoula on previous federal firearms charges.

Jerry Marjerrison, 54, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy to six months in prison, followed by a five-month home arrest with electronic monitoring. He also was fined $300 and must forfeit all his firearms.

The sentence resulted from Marjerrison being a felon in possession of firearms.

On Sept. 13, 1983, Marjerrison was convicted on a federal felony wildlife charge.

In 2004, state investigators began an undercover investigation into allegations that Marjerrison was involved in illegal outfitting. During the investigation, the agents determined that Marjerrison had a Winchester .22 magnum rifle in the back of his pickup while guiding undercover agents on hunts.

The press release states that on Sept. 28, 2004, the agents witnessed Marjerrison shoot a squirrel out of a tree in his yard using the same rifle.

When his home was searched on Jan. 28, 2005, a Ruger .270 rifle was seized along with the Winchester rifle. Those guns led to the felon-in-possession charges to which Marjerrison pleaded guilty in July this year.

In separate legal action that resulted from the same investigation, Marjerrison pleaded innocent on Tuesday to 16 misdemeanor state wildlife charges and one felony charge in Sanders County District Court.

Most of the charges leveled against Marjerrison allege that he was outfitting without a license on multiple occasions from 2001 through 2005.