Would-be burglar gets five years with Department of Corrections

One of four men arrested following a botched burglary earlier this year earned five years behind bars on Sept. 22 with a district court judge saying the quartet was lucky the foiled home invasion didn’t end in bloodshed.

Flathead County District Court Judge Robert Allison handed down the five year sentence in the state Department of Corrections to Brandon Lee Alden Billings, 20, despite the latter’s open court apology. Billings’ attorney, Timothy Wenz, had asked for leniency — describing the botched burglary as a “horrible” decision and the first Billings had made as an adult — to no avail.

“This could have ended up with you dead, [the victim] dead … These things just take on horrible paths sometimes,” Allison said before deeming the conspiracy to commit burglary charge as not, in his mind, eligible for a deferred or suspended sentence.

His sentence was in line with what prosecutors sought for the 20-year-old at the outset of the hearing. Billings and his three alleged compatriots were arrested after planning to break into an associate’s home on March 26 and rob him of drugs and money, court documents said. They learned they had the wrong address after breaking into a Fourth Avenue East home in Kalispell, according to court documents.

During his change of plea hearing in June, Billings admitted to kicking in the door of the home, bringing him face to face with one of the residents, who screamed. The four then ran off into the evening, court documents said.

Taking the stand during Billings’ sentencing, Jackie Harker, the resident, recounted the ordeal. A home is supposed to be a safe place, she said. The incident left both her and her 9-year-old daughter traumatized.

“This is the most violated I have ever felt in my life,” Harker said.

Harker said her daughter is just beginning to sleep again and recounted struggling with the guilt of being unable to protect her child. Harker worried she was going to die during the home invasion.

“Your footprint is still on my door,” she told Billings from the witness stand. “The decision you made will affect me my entire life. It will affect my child her entire life.”

For his part, Billings said he got caught up with the wrong crowd during a moment of vulnerability.

“I know what I did was wrong,” he said. “I regret every bit of it, but this is no excuse.”

He described his criminal proceedings as an eye-opener and said he hoped to better himself.

During her time on the stand, Harker acknowledged the length of time Billings faced behind bars, but said he needed to “sit somewhere and think” about his actions.

“I feel bad a stupid decision could ruin your life,” she said. “It ruined mine.”

Deputy County Attorney Alison Howard underscored Harker’s testimony, arguing that Billings must be held to account. She also noted that as a juvenile, Billings had a history of home invasion.

“Sometimes we forget the personal component and how these crimes affect people,” she said. “There has to be some sort of consequence for Mr. Billings.”

Allison agreed. Along with five years in the state Department of Corrections, Allison gave him credit for six days served and ordered him to pay $200 in restitution for the victim’s damaged door.

“You do have an opportunity to have a life,” Allison told Billings as he handed down the sentence, “but you’ve pretty well squandered it up until this point.”

News Editor Derrick Perkins can be reached at 758-4430 or dperkins@dailyinterlake.com.