California woman sentenced for Roosville smuggling

MISSOULA – A California woman who attempted to smuggle a citizen of Great Britain into the United States was sentenced Tuesday to 6 months of probation, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said.

Tracy Routh Lautenslager, 54, pleaded guilty in August 2025 to one count of conspiracy to bring aliens into the United States at a location other than a designated port of entry.

U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen presided.

The government alleged in court documents that on April 1, 2025, a vehicle entered the United States through the Roosville, Montana Port of Entry. The vehicle was operated by the Lautenslager, a United States citizen. 

She was admitted to the United States and proceeded to the Swisher Lake area near Lake Koocanusa. The United States Border Patrol encountered her driving around the area.

Around that same time, the Border Patrol was alerted to a lone male walking across the international boundary line from Canada to the United States. They responded and searched for the man but were unable to locate him and believed he returned to Canada.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) apprehended the man after they found him walking around and seemingly lost. They escorted him to the Roosville, British Columbia Port of Entry to be identified and processed. The man, Lautenslager’s husband, was identified as a citizen of Great Britain who does not have any lawful status in the United States.

On suspicions of smuggling, Lautenslager was denied entry back to Canada and returned to the United States, where she was interviewed by law enforcement. She disclosed she and her husband planned to circumvent the immigration process and avoid the point of entry because he did not have legal status in the United States. 

She said the plan was to drop him off at a location on the Canadian side of the border, drive into the United States, and then pick him up. She admitted what she attempted to do was wrong.

Lautenslager’s cellular phone was collected and searched. The phone contained text messages between her and her husband discussing logistics as the conspiracy was unfolding.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Katy Stack prosecuted the case. The U.S. Border Patrol conducted the investigation.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.