A 24-year-old transient who was convicted of severely beating another man over the apparent theft of a pork chop has been sentenced to 15 years in prison.
District Judge Ed McLean of Missoula told Justin Dwayne King on Wednesday that he cannot be trusted to live in society.
King was convicted of felony assault with a weapon after prosecutors say he beat another man with a metal rod last October and punched the man’s girlfriend in the face when she tried to intervene. One of the police officers testified that the victim’s face was so bloody he thought he was wearing a Halloween mask.
McLean cited the violent attack and King’s behavior in jail — including fighting with cellmates and urinating on the walls — in handing down a longer sentence than prosecutors sought.