Man sent to prison for 25 years in sex case

A Bigfork man was given a net 25 year sentence to Montana State Prison for having sex with an underage girl in 2014 on Thursday.

Jaymason Bottin, 36, was sentenced to 40 years in the Montana State Prison, with 15 suspended by Flathead District Court Judge Robert Allison for one felony count of sexual intercourse without consent. Bottin was also given a 10-year-sentence and 7-year-sentence to run concurrent for two previously suspended 2005 felony convictions for criminal posession of drugs with intent to distribute and issuance of a bad check.

Allison noted that Bottin had gotten a number of traffic violations and other misdemeanor charges while he was on probation for the previous convictions.

“It does cause me to wonder if Mr. Bottin has any regard for what the law requires at all,” Allison said.

Bottin was arrested in November 2014 after he impregnated a 15-year-old girl. He admitted to the crime after a DNA analysis identified him as the father.

“I, in this case, find the fact that Mr. Bottin was 35 and the victim was 15 at the time of the offense to be an aggravating factor,” Allison said. “I feel the same way when I see that there was a friendship relationship with the family.”

Defense attorney Nicholas Aemisegger tried to use Bottin’s relationship with the family as a mitigating factor, saying that Bottin had not sought out sex with a young girl, but that his relationship had started as a professional friendship, that morphed into a confidential relationship and eventually ended in a sexual relationship that never should have happened. Aemisegger argued for a 25-year sentence, with 10 years suspended.

Allison did not buy into the argument.

“I find it really hard to understand even at that age as to how I could have a close intimate friendship with a 15-year-old child,” Allison said. “It just doesn’t quite compute.”

Allison said he also found it concerning that a sheriff’s deputy interviewed Bottin about a possible inappropriate relationship with the girl before she was impregnated, and despite a warning from law enforcement, Bottin saw fit to have sex with the girl anyway.

“To me, that demonstrates an impulsive, I guess, disregard for even the smallest shred of common sense, let alone criminal code,” Allison said.

Prosecutor Travis Ahner pointed out during his sentencing recommendation that Bottin failed to take responsibility for the sex crime when he was evaluated by a psychologist and tried to make himself out to be a victim by saying that “I’m not the first older guy she has done this to.”

Ahner also said that the sex offender evaluation and pre-sentence investigation classified Bottin as a psychopath, who has multiple children he has not cared for with $53,000 in outstanding child support and medical bills due.

The tests found that Bottin was likely to re-offend, Ahner said.

At sentencing Bottin issued an apology to the victim and her family, who were in the courtroom to hear it.

“I know it is going to take time to heal,” Bottin said. “I don’t want to put the victim through anything else and I hope they can forgive me.”

Bottin was also ordered to pay more than $25,000 to the Montana Medicaid program for services rendered to the victim, and more than $4,000 to the victim’s family.

Reporter Megan Strickland can be reached at 758-4459 or mstrickland@dailyinterlake.com.