A federal jury on Wednesday convicted a 28-year-old Browning man of shooting someone on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation in 2024, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Following a one-and-a-half-day trial at the Missouri River Courthouse in Great Falls, Kevin James Trombley was found guilty of one count of assault resulting in serious bodily injury, one count of assault with a dangerous weapon, and one count of use of a firearm during a crime of violence.
Trombley faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years to life imprisonment, a $250,000 fine and five years of supervised release. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 23 before Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris. He was detained pending further proceedings.
According to court documents and trial testimony, the victim was drinking with friends and family in the late hours of March 22, 2024 into the early hours of March 23 when Trombley and some friends entered the same residence without permission.
Once inside, a fight ensued among the victim, Trombley and others, which caused damage and prompted the homeowner to grab a pellet gun and declare that everyone needed to leave.
The fight relocated outside into the driveway that abuts the house where the victim stood unarmed with his hands raised. According to witnesses, the said something to the effect of, “What are we going to do?”
At that point, Trombley, who was seated in the driver’s seat of the truck, leaned across the passenger seat and fired a gun through the truck’s window. The shot hit the victim in the abdomen and he fell to the ground, records state.
Trombley drove off in his truck while the victim was transported to Blackfeet Community Hospital before he was transferred to Benefis Hospital in Great Falls, where he underwent surgery for injuries to his internal organs.
Law enforcement spoke with several witnesses who identified Trombley as the shooter. During a search of his residence, authorities found him sleeping in a back bedroom. They also found a Smith & Wesson .40 caliber pistol, which was later confirmed to have been purchased by Trombley, between the box spring and the mattress he was sleeping on, according to documents.
Officers later found a spent shell casing on the passenger-side floorboard in Trombley’s truck.
During an interview with law enforcement, Trombley did not deny being at the party but denied knowing the victim was shot.