133 results for 'court:"Montana Supreme Court"'.
J. Gustafson holds that the district court properly used the rational basis standard to analyze a constitutional substantive due process claim that parents made against school districts over Covid-19 mask mandates. The parents argued that a strict scrutiny standard applies, but that would only apply if masking policies implicated a fundamental right. Also, the testimony about masking's harmful effects proffered by parents' hybrid witnesses would not have addressed the reasonableness of masks at stopping Covid-19. Affirmed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Gustafson, Filed On: December 12, 2023, Case #: DA 23-0046, Categories: Education, Due Process, Covid-19
J. Baker finds that the district court properly revoked defendant's suspended sentence. He was not prejudiced by a six-day delay in bringing him before the district court for revocation proceedings because a previous appearance in justice court where he was informed of the revocation petition satisfied the prompt initial appearance requirement. Affirmed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Baker, Filed On: December 5, 2023, Case #: DA 22-0325, Categories: Sentencing, Sex Offender
J. Gustafson finds that the district court improperly denied a father's motion to amend a parenting plan without holding a hearing. Most of the significant developmental and circumstantial changes that took place since the 10-year-old was a toddler were uncontested. Also, the district court should order a parenting evaluation to consider whether the father's request for unsupervised contact is in the child's best interest. Reversed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Gustafson, Filed On: December 5, 2023, Case #: DA 23-0108, Categories: Family Law
J. Baker finds that the district court erred in finding that the heirs to an intestate estate had agreed to distribute a 1978 Ford pickup truck to one of the four heirs. Any oral agreement is insufficient to show that a written agreement was executed as required by statute. Also, the estate's personal representative was not obligated to put any oral agreement into writing. Reversed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Baker, Filed On: December 5, 2023, Case #: DA 23-0156, Categories: Wills / Probate
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J. Shea finds that the district court properly held that a prescriptive easement was established to a ranch road for agricultural, recreational and residential purposes. But the lack of open and notorious use barred the establishment of a prescriptive easement for the use a second ranch road. Reversed in part.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Shea, Filed On: November 28, 2023, Case #: DA 21-0360, Categories: Property
J. McGrath finds that the Department of Revenue properly construed the methodology for calculating statewide property tax mills. County governments argued they have exclusive authority to levy statewide school-equalization mills and that the Department cannot require them to "bank" tax revenues that exceed the amounts they are authorized by statute to levy in a single year. The Department is a statutory governmental entity authorized with providing equalized funding for public education and the university system and it may carry forward any mills that exceed the statutory cap and require counties to use those mills in subsequent years to meet the cap.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: McGrath, Filed On: November 22, 2023, Case #: OP 23-0635, Categories: Tax
J. McGrath finds that the Attorney General erred in determining that a proposed ballot initiative is unconstitutional. The initiative, which would create open primaries, does not violate the separate vote requirement of the Montana Constitution. The initiative's identification of the offices that would fall under the new system would not confuse voters or combine unrelated amendments. A limit on signature-gathering is integral to the initiative. The initiative's elimination of the requirement that candidates secure political party endorsements or nominations to appear on the ballot would not affect the legislature's authority to regulate elections.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: McGrath, Filed On: November 22, 2023, Case #: OP 23-0634, Categories: Elections
J. McGrath finds that the trial court rightly rejected an environmental quality department's approval of a permit to expand the operation of a coal strip mine. The Board of Environmental Review erred in finding that the operator had taken adequate steps to maintain the hydrological health of an adjacent creek. While pollutants would not significantly raise the creek's salinity, the Board failed to properly consider that the expanded operations would increase the duration that pollutants would be present. Also, the Board should have given more consideration to the cumulative impacts of expanded operations on the area's hydrology. Reversed in part.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: McGrath, Filed On: November 22, 2023, Case #: DA 22-0064, Categories: Environment, Water
J. Calahan finds that the trial court properly refused to order a therapist to produce records of sessions with defendant's minor victims since the records are consistent with the record and do not contain exculpatory evidence. A juror who unequivocally agreed to follow the law was not impermissibly impartial for saying a sexual abuse victim might be more credible for overcoming possible stigma. However, the trial court must conform its written judgment to the oral sentencing. Reversed in part.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: McGrath, Filed On: November 21, 2023, Case #: DA 21-0232, Categories: Jury, Sex Offender, Discovery
J. Shea holds that the trial court properly reopened an estate for a subsequently discovered asset. The estate's personal representative believed a stock pledge agreement between the decedent and his grandson was valueless when the estate was closed. Reopening is allowed because the representative had diligently contacted the stock issuer and the grandson, but the issuer had no record of the agreement and the grandson refused to take the representative's calls, so the representative's belief the agreement had no value was due solely to the grandson's stonewalling. Affirmed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Shea, Filed On: November 21, 2023, Case #: DA 22-0744, Categories: Wills / Probate
J. Rice finds that the trial court properly ordered restitution based on a single count of criminal mischief. The amount of the order reflected the aggregated loss to five vehicles that defendant vandalized in one spree. But the order must be reduced because the damage to one car turned out to be less than the original estimate. Reversed in part.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Rice, Filed On: November 14, 2023, Case #: DA 21-0356, Categories: Restitution, Vandalism
J. Baker finds that the trial court improperly held that an estate's negligence claims were barred by issue preclusion. The Human Rights Bureau, which had heard claims that the estate's decedent was not given adequate treatment because of his race and disability, lacked the authority to hear the estate's tort claims for medical malpractice. The trial court also erred in holding that the county detaining the decedent lacked any duty of care to him. The county did not have a duty to provide detainees medical care, but it did have a duty to transport him to a hospital. Reversed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Baker , Filed On: November 7, 2023, Case #: DA 22-0656, Categories: Negligence, Jurisdiction
J. Sandefur holds that the trial court properly interpreted an agreement that settled a dispute between a town and developers over zoning requirements for a geotechnical investigation and analysis related to two residential subdivisions. However, on remand, the trial court must determine whether the town's council voted to approve the settlement agreement. Reversed in part.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Sandefur, Filed On: November 7, 2023, Case #: DA 22-0312, Categories: Construction, Settlements, Zoning
J. Gustafson holds that the Youth Court exceeded its authority by imposing additional terms to a juvenile's original disposition when he turned 18. A Youth Court may not modify an existing disposition, issue a new disposition or impose additional conditions, such as sexual offender registration and an added term of commitment, without pleadings and proving that the original disposition was violated. Reversed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Gustafson, Filed On: November 7, 2023, Case #: DA 22-0089, Categories: Juvenile Law, Sex Offender, Due Process
J. McKinnon finds that the lower court properly found that the state could withdraw from its plea agreement sentencing recommendation based on alleged crimes defendant committed while in custody. Furthermore, defendant waived any challenge to the untimeliness of the state's persistent felony offender notice by entering a guilty plea to assault. Affirmed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: McKinnon, Filed On: October 31, 2023, Case #: DA 22-0306, Categories: Sentencing, Assault, Plea
J. Baker finds that the lower court properly terminated the mother's parental rights after multiple tribes confirmed the child does not qualify for tribal membership and the mother repeatedly tested positive for meth. The record includes documented instances of neglect, abuse and drug use by the mother that substantially impacted the child's welfare. Affirmed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Baker, Filed On: October 31, 2023, Case #: DA 23-0157, Categories: Family Law, Native Americans
[Consolidated.] J. Gustafson finds that the lower court improperly denied the mobile home residents' motion to stay an eviction proceeding. The Montana Residential Mobile Home Lot Rental Act does not allow a lot-only landlord to terminate a tenant's month-to-month lease without cause, even if the contract provides the landlord that permission. The legislative history of the Act makes it clear that lawmakers specifically sought to ban no-cause evictions of mobile home owners who rented lots. Reversed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Gustafson, Filed On: October 31, 2023, Case #: DA 22-0358, Categories: Landlord Tenant
J. McGrath finds that the lower court improperly imposed a felony sentence on defendant for a DUI conviction. The state failed to prove the existence of defendant's prior DUI convictions for purposes of enhancing his sentence. A pre-sentence report alone does not constitute adequate proof. Reversed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: McGrath, Filed On: October 24, 2023, Case #: DA 21-0589, Categories: Sentencing, Dui
J. Gustafson finds that the lower court properly distributed the insurance proceeds resulting from a house fire to the son's estate to whom the home belonged. The mother's will specifically left the home to one son, so the doctrine of equitable conversion applies, and his estate is entitled to the money to restore the home. Affirmed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Gustafson, Filed On: October 24, 2023, Case #: DA23-0111, Categories: Insurance, Wills / Probate, Contract
J. Shea finds that the trial court properly denied a motion to suppress methamphetamine found in defendant's home during a probation home visit. Defendant allowed her probation officer and other officers to enter her home, where they saw a meth pipe in plain view, which gave them the requisite cause to conduct a more thorough search. Affirmed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Shea, Filed On: October 17, 2023, Case #: DA 21-0248, Categories: Drug Offender, Probation, Search
J. McKinnon finds that the lower court had personal jurisdiction over a New York-based wildlife photographer accused of using Facebook to interfere with the business operation of a wildlife photography farm in Montana because, though she is not from Montana, she contacted the Montana business and tagged enough Montana residents during her campaign against the farm to generate jurisdiction. Affirmed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: McGrath, Filed On: October 11, 2023, Case #: OP 22-0587, Categories: Interference With Contract, Equal Protection, Jurisdiction
J. Gustafson finds that defendant — who was charged with deliberate homicide before he took a guilty plea without acknowledging his guilt — did not demonstrate a need for this court to engage in plain error review of his plea’s sufficiency. Additionally, his claim for ineffective assistance of counsel is not based in the record, so his direct appeal is inappropriate. Affirmed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Gustafson, Filed On: October 6, 2023, Case #: DA 21-0465, Categories: Murder, Sentencing, Plea
J. McGrath finds that much of a criminal defendant’s sentence upon revocation was incorrectly calculated, granting his petition for writ of habeas corpus and directing the lower court to amend its order revoking his suspended sentence and commitment. His challenges to two of his earlier criminal cases are dismissed because he previously never appealed them. Reversed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: McGrath, Filed On: October 3, 2023, Case #: OP 23-0498, Categories: Sentencing
J. McGrath refuses to stay the execution of defendant’s sentence for felony criminal mischief, such as for threatening to arrest a judge and prosecutors. The lower court properly determined this man is a threat to his community. Denied.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: McGrath, Filed On: October 3, 2023, Case #: DA 23-0100, Categories: Sentencing
J. Gustafson finds that the trial court properly allowed a physician to testify about the signs and symptoms of a hypothetical strangulation, leaving the jury to apply the law to the facts before it convicted defendant of strangulation of a partner. Admission of a jail guard's characterization of the unit housing defendant as the "high-risk, violent crimes pod" was harmless error. A recording from a separate, previous hearing involving defendant and his victim was not hearsay since the statements were probative and made under oath. Also, defendant failed to show he was prejudiced by a juror who checked his phone and dozed off. Affirmed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Gustafson, Filed On: September 26, 2023, Case #: DA 21-0323, Categories: Evidence, Domestic Violence, Experts
J. Rice finds that the Attorney General properly rejected a ballot initiative to amend the state constitution to limit property tax increases. The multiple and unrelated changes contained in the initiative would alter the ways that multiple, separate agencies assess and collect property taxes, in violation of the separate-vote requirement of the constitution, which requires that individual constitutional ballot issues be presented to voters separately. Affirmed.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Rice, Filed On: September 26, 2023, Case #: OP 23-0331, Categories: Elections, Property, Tax