A Montana federal court sentenced a 39-year-old Missoula woman this week to more than two years in prison for stealing two pickup trucks from the U.S. Forest Service. According to a Justice Department announcement, Kasey Nichol Hugs pleaded guilty to theft of government property in December 2023.
Although court records with details about the incident are sealed, the Justice Department said Hugs stole a Dodge Ram 2500 crew cab pickup truck containing two government cell phones from a Forest Service facility in Missoula in December 2020. Then, five days later, she stole another truck, a 2017 Ford crew cab, from the same facility.
Exactly how she gained access to the trucks is unclear. Officials say she was "attempting to gain access" until she finally did. They added that Hugs used the trucks for several weeks to drive to various businesses in Missoula before abandoning them in various locations. Both vehicles had been damaged and missing truck bed toppers. In all, the government the property was valued at nearly $70,000.
Ahead of sentencing, multiple friends, social services representatives, and non-profit volunteers sent in letters on her behalf. While they don't reveal what happened, they do shed light on Hugs' background.
The letters describe Hugs as having a "strong desire to maintain her sobriety and work to help others ... overcome addiction, mental illness, and the effects of incarceration" with an organization called Valley Felon-Aid Re-Entry Program and Welcome Back!
Friends described her as a caring mother of two and a dedicated student whose life was "shattered" by the death of her brother. And, a social worker who worked with her explained: "The thread of abuse, trauma and neglect running through her life and often presenting in her interpersonal relationships plays a role in where she is today."
The social worker added: "We are all struggling to make the correct choices in our lives, every day, in each moment. Ms. Hugs was often presented with limited options assessed through lenses of pain."
In all, the court sentenced Hugs to serve two years and two months in prison along with three years of supervised release and to pay $11,836 in restitution for the damage she caused to the government property.
