Dateline: On A Dark, Deserted Highway - 5 harrowing details of Deputy Mason Moore's murder in Broadwater County

Dateline: On A Dark, Deserted Highway talks about how, on May 16, 2017, in the early morning, something terrible happened to Deputy Mason Moore on a lonely road in Montana. Broadwater County Sheriff's Deputy Mason Moore was doing his job, making a regular traffic stop on Highway 287 near Three Forks.

But it didn't end like most stops do. The people he stopped, Lloyd Barrus and his son Marshall, shot him. These two men didn't just stop there. They started a fast car chase that went on for almost 150 miles. It was like a scene from a movie, but it was all too real. The chase ended up near Missoula.

In the end, there was a big fight with the police, and Marshall didn't make it out alive. Lloyd, the dad, was put in jail. Years later, he was given a life sentence because he played a part in what happened to Deputy Mason Moore.

This began with a simple traffic stop and but affected many lives.

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5 facts about the murder of Deputy Mason Moore from Dateline: On A Dark, Deserted Highway

1) Lloyd Barrus's transformation from missionary to militant

Lloyd Barrus had a very religious start in life. He spent six months as a Mormon missionary, which shows how much he believed in his faith. But as time passed, his beliefs changed in a big way. He started to get really against the government. He went to secret meetings and didn't trust authorities at all.

This change in what he thought made his personal life harder. It put pressure on his relationships and set him up for violent things that would happen later.

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2) The escalation of domestic violence and family turmoil

Lloyd's strong feelings against the government caused more trouble in his family life. His first wife, Tracy, talked about some unmentionable terrible things he did to her, like threatening her with a gun and hitting her. She was so scared that she decided to leave him.

But even after they got a divorce, things didn't get better. Lloyd took their two boys, Marshall and Jeffrey, and moved them to Washington. The kids couldn't see their mom anymore and had to live with their dad's extreme ideas about the world.

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3) Indoctrination and criminal activities of Marshall and Jeffrey Barrus

Marshall and Jeffrey were raised by a father who taught them to dislike the government and how to use weapons. As a result, they got involved in a lot of crimes. In March 2000, the three of them were in a car chase across different states. During the chase, they shot at police officers, like Deputy Mason Moore.

The chase ended in Death Valley, California. Before they gave up, Jeffrey shot down a police helicopter and had to go to prison for 25 years. Lloyd was also sentenced, but only for 15 years. The reason for the shorter sentence was that doctors said Lloyd had severe paranoid personality disorder.

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4) The fatal encounter with Deputy Mason Moore

Lloyd went back to his anti-government actions after being released in 2013. One day, on May 16, 2017, he and Marshall caught the attention of a police officer, Deputy Mason Moore, by speeding in a white Suburban. When the deputy tried to pull them over, things quickly got out of hand. The two of them shot at Deputy Mason Moore's car, which tragically led to his death.

The chase after this incident involved several law enforcement agencies. It all came to an end near Missoula, where the story took a turn. Marshall ended up getting shot and didn't make it, while Lloyd was caught by the police.

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5) Legal proceedings and sentencing of Lloyd Barrus

The aftermath of Deputy Mason Moore's murder was a long legal process. There were concerns about Lloyd Barrus's mental health, which caused delays in the case. In the end, in April 2022, Barrus was given a life sentence without parole.

During the sentencing, Jodi Moore, the widow of the slain Deputy Mason Moore, read a heartfelt letter from her husband. He wrote it before he died. In the letter, he talked about the dangers of his job and how much he loved his family.

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To fully understand the Deputy Mason Moore case, with interviews and in-depth details, tune into Dateline: On A Dark, Deserted Highway.

Watch it on Peacock and the Oxygen app to get the full story.

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