A woman who bought a gun for a man facing homicide charges who could not legally buy a firearm is set to serve a year-long sentence.
Jade McClaren, 42, of Rock Springs, was convicted of straw purchasing a firearm on April 20 after admitting to buying a gun for Brandon Bent, 23. Straw purchasing refers to buying a firearm and lying to the dealer to purchase it for someone else.
Bent is a non-citizen of the United States who is facing first-degree intentional homicide charges in Sauk County for allegedly killing a woman at a house on the 300 block of Canyon Road in Lake Delton on July 4, 2025.
McClaren was sentenced to one year and one day for lying on a form while purchasing a firearm, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin Chadwick Elgersma announced on Monday. Her sentence will be followed by three years of supervised release.
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He was arrested after a woman was found dead in a home on the 300 block of Canyon Road in the village on Friday night.
“Most often straw purchases occur either because the straw buyer can pass the required background check and the actual buyer cannot, or because the actual buyer wants to avoid having their name associated with the gun transaction,” Elgersma said in his Monday statement, adding that straw purchasing undermines background check laws.
McClaren bought the gun on June 2 from an unnamed dealer, 32 days before Bent’s alleged killing occurred. She later admitted to authorities that she purchased the gun for Bent and that he could not legally buy a gun. Judge William Conley, who sentenced McClaren, said McClaren knew that Bent was “a danger” and still bought the weapon.
Bent has a scheduled plea hearing in Sauk County Circuit Court on Sept. 28. The jury trial is scheduled for March 8-19. He is currently being held at Sauk County Jail on a $1 million bond, and also has an Immigrations Customs and Enforcement hold which will be addressed after his charges are resolved, according to Sauk County Jail Captain Nicole Schlough.
