Heart Butte man pleads guilty to shooting at a family on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation

GREAT FALLS - A Heart Butte man who shot at a family, including two children, on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation admitted to charges today, Acting U.S. Attorney Mark Steger Smith said.

The defendant, Raymond David Boggs, Jr., 53, pleaded guilty to one count of assault with a dangerous weapon and two counts of felony child abuse. Boggs faces 10 years of imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and 3 years of supervised release.

U.S. District Judge William W. Mercer presided and will determine a sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Sentencing was set for Sept. 28, 2026. Boggs remained released with conditions pending further proceedings.

The government alleged in court documents that on the evening of May 14, 2024, multiple law enforcement agencies near Heart Butte, Montana, responded to a 911 call. The call came from Jane Doe 1, and her son, John Doe 1, who were cleaning out a family property along with Jane Doe 1's 12-year-old nephew (John Doe 2) and her 11-year-old niece (Jane Doe 2). Both Jane Doe 1 and John Doe 1 told the dispatcher that the defendant, Raymond Boggs, was shooting at them.

When officers arrived, Jane Doe 1 and John Doe 1 explained that Boggs had yelled at them from his property while he watched them from a golf cart before he returned to that area in a truck. He pulled a gun from his truck and fired at the group while they were outside, and he continued to shoot into the house when the four took shelter inside. Jane Doe 1 and John Doe 2 described hearing two different sounding gunshots. They then pointed out Boggs to the officers as he drove around on a golf cart. A group of officers canvassed the area between the two houses. They ultimately contacted Boggs, who was riding in a golf cart and had a shotgun with him. Boggs was detained, and the shotgun was taken into evidence.

At the direction of Jane Doe 1 and John Doe 1, officers found spent shell casings at the location where Boggs was shooting. Along with the spent shell casings was a spent shotgun shell; ballistic evidence showed the casing had been fired from Boggs' shotgun. Officers also observed bullet holes in the exterior of the house that traveled into the house, and they observed bullet holes in vehicles parked alongside the house. They also recovered a bullet from a couch inside the home. When the occupants of the house were interviewed after the shooting, all four named Boggs as the shooter. The quartet, including John Doe 2 and Jane Doe 2, described feeling terrified that they would be hurt or killed as Boggs shot into the house.

The U.S. Attorney's Office prosecuted the case. The BIA, Blackfeet Law Enforcement Services, Glacier County Sheriff's Office, and Pondera County Sheriff's Office conducted the investigation.