Horace S. Davis

The case involved the conviction of Wiley F. Blakeslee for statutory rape of his eleven-year-old stepdaughter, for which a jury imposed a forty-five-year prison sentence. Blakeslee appealed, arguing that the trial court erred by denying a postponement after new counsel was appointed only three days before trial and by admitting a blood-stained undergarment into evidence. The Montana Supreme Court reversed the conviction and the order denying a new trial, holding that the abrupt appointment of new counsel without adequate preparation time violated the defendant's constitutional right under the Montana Constitution to appear and defend by counsel. The court reasoned that this right, implemented by statute, required sufficient opportunity for appointed counsel to prepare a defense in a serious criminal case, regardless of prior counsel's involvement.

criminal lawprocedure

In Bryant v. Board of Examiners, a Montana taxpayer sued to block the State Board of Examiners from issuing bonds under a 1955 law to reconstruct and renovate the state capitol building, including installing roll call voting machines, arguing the plan was invalid because it pledged income from federal land grants for purposes outside the grants' scope. The trial court ruled for the defendants, and the Montana Supreme Court affirmed. The court held that sections 12 and 17 of the federal Enabling Act, which granted lands to Montana for erecting public buildings at the capital, permitted the bond issue because the power to erect such buildings includes the implied authority to reconstruct, renovate, and equip them for their intended use, and the pledged land-grant income could therefore be used for those purposes without violating the grants.

federal powerproperty

The case involved Victor Chemical Works challenging its 1952 property tax assessment in Silver Bow County, Montana, after the county and state boards of equalization denied reclassification of its newly built industrial plant for manufacturing elemental phosphorus. The company paid part of the tax under protest and sued to recover the difference, arguing that a 1951 statutory amendment placed the plant in a lower-tax Class Five category at 7% of value rather than the 30% Class Four rate. The district court ruled against the company on demurrer, and the Montana Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the amendment violated constitutional requirements for uniform assessment and taxation of property under Article XII. The court reasoned that the statute's distinction for new plants lacked a sufficient basis to avoid arbitrariness and failed to satisfy uniformity mandates, despite legislative intent to encourage industry.

taxespropertybusiness & regulatory

The case involved Alan R. Bain, who was charged with practicing medicine without the required certificate under Montana law by using the title "Dr." in connection with his name in advertisements and signs, where he described himself as a physiotherapist, heart specialist, and general practitioner. The Supreme Court of Montana affirmed the conviction, holding that there was substantial evidence that Bain used the title "Dr." in a medical sense and that the practice of physiotherapy falls within the practice of medicine as defined by statute. The court's reasoning centered on the evidence from directories, letters, and office signs showing Bain's self-identification, combined with the statutory interpretation that practicing any branch of the healing arts constitutes practicing medicine.

criminal lawhealthcare

In Richland County v. Anderson, the county sued S.A. Anderson and Florence V. Anderson for damages after a dam and reservoir on their ranch broke in 1951, causing flooding and harm to county property; a jury awarded the county $27,473.33. The Montana Supreme Court affirmed the judgment against Florence V. Anderson but directed dismissal as to S.A. Anderson. The court held that the complaint sufficiently stated a claim, that evidence supported a finding of negligence by Florence Anderson because she had possession and control of the structures, failed to inspect them despite their known dangerous condition after enlargement, and continued using them, and that the trial court's jury instructions on negligence, knowledge, and liability for impounded water correctly stated the law when read as a whole. The court found insufficient evidence linking S.A. Anderson to the dam's maintenance or control.

torts & liabilityproperty

The case involved James R. Zumwalt, who pleaded guilty in 1952 to passing a false and worthless check and was sentenced to seven years in prison. After the district court denied his petition for a writ of error coram nobis seeking to vacate the conviction based on alleged errors and constitutional violations, Zumwalt petitioned the Montana Supreme Court for an original writ to set aside the judgment. The court granted the state's motion to quash, holding that it lacked jurisdiction because the proper remedy was a direct appeal under state statutes, either from the final judgment in a civil proceeding within six months or from a post-conviction order in the criminal case within sixty days. The majority reasoned that appellate jurisdiction is limited by constitutional and statutory requirements, and the extraordinary writ could not substitute for the adequate and available appeal process that Zumwalt had not pursued.

criminal lawprocedure