Daniel J. Shea

In State v. Trimmer, the defendant was charged with felony assault for wounding people with a rifle but was acquitted of the felony and convicted only of the lesser-included misdemeanor assault offense. The trial court imposed the maximum six-month jail term and $500 fine for the misdemeanor, then applied a weapons-based sentence enhancement statute to add a consecutive two-year prison term. The Montana Supreme Court held that the enhancement statute applies only to felonies, not misdemeanors, and vacated the entire sentence for resentencing. The court reasoned that the statute's text and legislative history limit it to felonies, and that courts lack jurisdiction to impose prison sentences exceeding the statutory maximum for a misdemeanor conviction.

criminal lawprocedure

In State v. Sierra, the Montana Supreme Court reviewed a district court order suppressing marijuana discovered in a defendant's suitcase during a booking inventory after his arrest for suspected illegal presence in the United States. The trial court had admitted a small amount of marijuana found in the defendant's pockets but excluded the larger quantity from the suitcase, finding the search violated state constitutional privacy protections. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the inventory search of the closed suitcase required a warrant or less intrusive alternatives under Article II, Section 10 of the Montana Constitution, which provides broader privacy rights than the Fourth Amendment. The decision emphasized that standardized federal inventory procedures do not automatically satisfy Montana's constitutional standards in these circumstances.

criminal lawprocedurecivil rights

In Price Building Service, Inc. v. Holms, a contractor performed extensive remodeling on a commercial building under an oral agreement with lessors and lessees, who had stipulated that the lessors would cover the first $25,000 of costs, and later filed a mechanic's lien after nonpayment of the full bill exceeding $55,000. The Montana Supreme Court affirmed the district court's foreclosure of the lien for a net amount of $33,579.12 after a $2,740 offset for defective work, while also upholding limits on the lessors' personal liability, but reversed the denial of prejudgment interest and attorney fees. The court reasoned that the lien was technically sufficient under the statutes despite lacking a building description and precise owner identification, that the relevant attorney fee statute required an award to a successful claimant, and that interest statutes allowed prejudgment interest on both the net claim and any offset that could be calculated. The case was remanded for determinations on the interest and fees.

propertybusiness & regulatoryprocedure

The case involved the State of Montana appealing the dismissal of a misdemeanor charge against Ronald Lee Ronningen for failing to remain at the scene of a personal injury accident. The district court dismissed the charge because the state did not bring the defendant to trial within the six-month period required by statute for misdemeanors. The Montana Supreme Court affirmed the dismissal, holding that the state failed to demonstrate good cause for the delay despite multiple opportunities to request a timely trial setting, and that the statutory "good cause" standard applied rather than broader constitutional speedy trial factors. The defendant had not requested any postponement, and the state's inaction after a judge's resignation led to the trial date being set beyond the deadline.

criminal lawprocedure

In State v. Hernandez, the defendant was convicted of felony theft for receiving stolen property after selling coins he had previously stolen and pleaded guilty to stealing in an earlier case; he was also ordered to pay restitution on charges dismissed in that prior proceeding. The Montana Supreme Court reversed the conviction and dismissed the charges. The court held that the second conviction violated the double jeopardy clause of the Montana Constitution because both offenses arose from the same initial taking of the coins. The court further ruled that the charge failed to state an offense under section 45-6-301(3), MCA, which requires that the property have been stolen by someone other than the defendant.

criminal law

The case involved a workers' compensation claim where claimant Henry Willis, permanently and totally disabled by a work injury while employed by Long Construction Company, sought conversion of his future periodic benefits into a single lump-sum payment. The Workers' Compensation Court approved the lump sum based on the claimant's financial and personal needs but ruled that the State Compensation Insurance Fund could reduce the award to present value, either by purchasing a commercial annuity or applying a 5% discount factor under section 39-71-2207. The Montana Supreme Court reversed, holding that section 39-71-741 does not authorize any reduction to present value, as its legislative history demonstrates an intent to eliminate such discounts for lump-sum conversions, and that section 39-71-2207 has no application to these facts. As a result, the claimant is entitled to receive the full undiscounted amount of his future benefits totaling $331,184.68.

labor & employment