A helicopter pilot with the Montana National Guard has pleaded “no contest” to trespassing charges stemming from a fly-in shed-hunting incident in May 2025. The part-time pilot, Deni Lynn Draper, was one of three servicemen who allegedly landed a Black Hawk helicopter on a private ranch in Sweet Grass County to collect shed antlers without permission.
Appearing in Sweet Grass County Court on Monday, Draper’s attorney Dwight Schulte changed his original plea from not guilty to no contest, waving Draper’s right to a jury trial. Judge Jessie Connolly accepted the plea, according to Montana Right Now, and she deferred Draper’s sentencing for six months, which means the charges can be erased from his record if he is not charged with another crime during that time.
Connolly also raised the fine amount from the $100 proposed by the prosecution to $500, which is the maximum penalty for a standard criminal trespass misdemeanor in Montana.
“The court finds since you do serve our country, you are held to a little higher standard than many people,” Connolly said of her decision to up the fine.
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County Prosecutor Patrick Dringman reportedly said he thought the plea agreement was appropriate, and that a “no contest” plea has the same effect of a “guilty” plea in the eyes of the law. (By definition, a no-contest plea is not an express admission of guilt, but it allows the court to sentence a defendant as if they were guilty.) If Draper does not adhere to that plea agreement, however, he will owe another $500 and could serve up to six months in jail. Another condition of the agreement is that Draper forfeits any future claims to the antlers that were taken from the ranch and later seized by state wildlife officials.
Draper’s plea agreement also has no bearing on the trespassing charges facing the other two servicemen, Michael Vincent Bray and Perry Woodland. Both pleaded not guilty, and their jury confirmation hearing is still scheduled for Jan. 14.
It’s unclear why Draper’s attorney changed his plea, and Schulte’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Schulte reportedly told the court that Draper made a mistake “without malicious intent” and that he never intended to land on private property.
Officials said last May, after the incident made national news, that the men took two elk sheds and one deadhead from the ranch owned by Linda McMullen. The servicemen were all charged with criminal trespassing, and neighboring ranchers David and Sandy Holman provided eyewitness reports of the helicopter landing on McMullen’s parcel.
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The Montana National Guard acknowledged the incident at the time, and state public affairs officer Major Ryan Finnegan seemed to imply in a statement that the three men knowingly landed the Black Hawk helicopter on the ranch to collect elk sheds. Finnegan said the senior pilot had reached out to McMullen to ask about giving an in-person apology.
The antlers, which are currently in the possession of Montana Fish Wildlife & Parks, will be returned to McMullen. There could also be additional repercussions for the three guardsmen, as a military investigation is ongoing, according to Montana Right Now. Dringman acknowledged the possibility in court Monday, saying “there’s other consequences beside what happened here today.”
The Montana National Guard did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the status of a military investigation.
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