HAVRE, Mont. (NMB) – A man accused of going on a hit and run spree in Havre in March 2020 has been given suspended sentences with the Montana State Prison totaling 15 years and has been ordered to pay over $65,000 in restitution.
Bruce Edward McLain, who was 65 at the time of the incident, was sentenced last week by Hill County District Court Judge Kaydee Snipes-Ruiz after pleading guilty to the felonies of criminal mischief by common scheme and tampering with or fabricating physical evidence back in July.
McLain was sentenced to 10 years suspended on the mischief count and 5 years on the tampering count. These were the recommended sentences in the plea agreement. The sentences will run consecutively and McLain will receive 487 days credit for time served.
13 different parties impacted by the incident will receive restitution, with amounts ranging from nearly $18,000 to $275.
During the suspended sentence, McLain is bound by numerous conditions. These range from being unable to use or own a firearm to being prohibited from using alcohol, illegal drugs, and other intoxicants, to being prohibited from entering bars and casinos, to being barred from being within 5,000 feet of any of the properties he damaged.
In the Judgment, Snipes-Ruiz said McLain’s “involvement in the offense conduct is the result of his various mental health and substance abuse issues not being appropriately managed or addressed at the time he committed these property offenses.” She says that professionals from the Montana State Hospital believe that “his substance abuse likely contributed to his irrational and impulsive behavior,” and “likely contributed to his poor decisions stemming to his…crimes.”
Snipes-Ruiz said of 20 victim impact statements the court was provided, all recommended McLain receive therapeutic help, and only three recommended he be incarcerated. She added that McLain’s criminal history is limited and “only manifested in the past ten years,” since the passing of his wife.
According to the judgment, McLain must obtain a chemical-dependency evaluation and mental health evaluation/assessment within 30 days of sentencing. He must remain in the care of chemical dependency and mental health treatment programs for the entirety of the sentence.
McLain was originally charged on 98 different counts, but it was reduced to the two felony charges in the amended information that McLain pleaded guilty to.
