Brian Gootkin confirmed as U.S. marshal for Montana after Senate vote

Brian Gootkin’s confirmation puts a familiar Montana law-enforcement figure into a federal job that reaches directly into Helena’s courthouse, prisoner transport, fugitive cases and multiagency enforcement work across the state. The Senate Judiciary Committee’s confirmed-nominations list shows Gootkin was confirmed May 14 by a 46-43 vote to serve a four-year term as U.S. marshal for the District of Montana, succeeding Craig J. Anderson.

The post caps a career that has moved through some of the state’s most visible public-safety institutions. Gootkin spent 21 years with the Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office, served as sheriff from 2012 to 2021, and later led the Montana Department of Corrections under Gov. Greg Gianforte. He stepped down from that corrections post after his marshal nomination advanced, and he had recently been working part-time as an adviser for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks on restructuring and rebuilding trust in the Enforcement Division.

For Lewis and Clark County, the practical impact is tied less to symbolism than to the day-to-day mechanics of federal law enforcement. The U.S. Marshals Service says Montana is one judicial district with court locations in Billings, Great Falls, Missoula, Butte and Helena, and the agency’s mission includes fugitive apprehension, judicial security, witness security, sex offender investigations, prisoner operations and prisoner transportation. That means the marshal’s office is part of the machinery that moves defendants, secures federal court operations and coordinates with local agencies when cases cross jurisdictional lines.

The district also works with the Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Office, Billings Police Department, Montana Department of Corrections Probation and Parole Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The Marshals Service has said its Montana Violent Offender Task Force began in January 2005, expanded from Billings into Missoula and Great Falls, and marked 20 years in January 2025 after closing 22,520 warrants across Montana, the United States and internationally with 41 partner agencies.

Montana’s congressional delegation and governor moved quickly to back Gootkin’s confirmation. Sen. Steve Daines and Sen. Tim Sheehy both praised his experience in county law enforcement and corrections, and Gianforte congratulated him after the vote. The nomination had been sent to the Senate in October 2025, closing a months-long transition and placing another longtime Montana public-safety official in a post that shapes how federal and local agencies work together.