Big Sky Times

A Three Forks man was sentenced in Gallatin County District Court on Monday to 110 years in Montana State Prison for the murder of a man in 2022, Attorney General Austin Knudsen announced.

Zachary Eugene Norman, 26, was found guilty in May of deliberate homicide with a weapons enhancement by a judge for the murder of Chase Estabrook in January 2022. The incident occurred outside a home in Three Forks following visits to local bars. According to court records, Norman and the Estabrook brothers—Chase and Brendan—ended up at a house party where an altercation ensued after Norman refused to leave when asked. Norman then shot and killed both Chase and Brendan Estabrook.

A judge found Norman not guilty on the deliberate homicide charge regarding Brendan, who prosecutors say died protecting his brother Chase. In July 2023, after a jury trial, Norman was also found guilty on two counts of tampering with or fabricating physical evidence related to the case.

Prosecutors presented testimony from over 25 witnesses and evidence including clothes belonging to Norman that were found in a bathtub, a double-stacked pistol seized from his residence linked to wounds on both victims, and video footage from multiple locations. This evidence contributed to securing the guilty verdict.

In sentencing Norman to 110 years in Montana State Prison without suspension and with quarter-time parole eligibility, the judge adhered to the prosecutors’ recommendation.