Montana Supreme Court Decisions 2012
Date: December 31, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 320
Docket Number: DA 11-0572
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff The Big Sky Colony, Inc., a signatory to the Hutterian Brethren Church Constitution, organized itself as a religious corporation under Montana law. Plaintiff Daniel Wipf was the Colony's first minister and…
Date: December 31, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 321
Docket Number: DA 11-0681
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs commenced a lawsuit against several power companies alleging that the Colstrip power facility, which bordered land owned by Plaintiffs, contaminated groundwater under their property. The parties proceeded with…
Date: December 31, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 319
Docket Number: DA 11-0722
Justia Opinion Summary: MCR, LLC filed an action for condemnation of a compressor station site on property owned by Appellees. Appellees counterclaimed against MCR for damage to their property and claimed punitive damages. Appellees sought…
Date: December 28, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 306
Docket Number: DA 12-0341
Justia Opinion Summary: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Montana (BCBS) signed an employment agreement with Plaintiff containing a clause to compel arbitration for any disputes regarding the employment agreement. After Plaintiff's employment was…
Date: December 27, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 317
Docket Number: DA 11-0254
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of one count of incest. On appeal, the Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) Defendant was not entitled to a new trial due to law enforcement's warrantless monitoring and…
Date: December 27, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 318
Docket Number: DA 11-0413
Justia Opinion Summary: This appeal was the third in the course of this litigation. Plaintiffs were a group of landowners with properties on the shores of Flathead Lake and a portion of the upper Flathead River. Plaintiffs commenced this action…
Date: December 27, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 316
Docket Number: DA 11-0611
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was charged with DUI, fourth or subsequent offense. The information provided that Defendant was previously convicted of qualifying DUI offenses in 2009, 1999, and 1992. Defendant filed a motion to dismiss due…
Date: December 27, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 312
Docket Number: DA 11-0755
Justia Opinion Summary: The Labairs lost their newborn baby after an early delivery by C-section. The Labairs retained Steve Carey and Carey Law Firm (Carey) to pursue their medical malpractice claim against their obstetrician. More than two…
Date: December 27, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 313
Docket Number: DA 12-0162
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to one count of sexual abuse of children pursuant to a plea agreement. The district court sentenced Defendant to the Department of Corrections (DOC) for seven years, with two years suspended upon…
Date: December 27, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 314
Docket Number: DA 12-0178
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant's vehicle collided with Plaintiff's vehicle as Plaintiff was driving through an intersection. The collision damaged both vehicles and injured Plaintiff. Plaintiff filed an amended complaint against Plaintiff,…
Date: December 26, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 307
Docket Number: DA 11-0658
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was found guilty of incest and attempted incest involving his daughter, incest and sexual intercourse without consent involving his step-daughter, and sexual intercourse without consent…
Date: December 24, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 304
Docket Number: DA 12-0065
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2000, Decedent executed a will that devised his estate to his niece Dana Fink and her brother, Dustin Badgett. In 2009, approximately seven weeks before his death, Decedent signed a quitclaim deed conveying…
Date: December 21, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 303
Docket Number: DA 11-0645
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of driving under the influence. Defendant appealed, arguing that the district court abused its discretion by partially denying his motion in limine to exclude video footage…
Date: December 21, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 302
Docket Number: DA 12-0129
Justia Opinion Summary: When Plaintiff brought her daughter to play in a city park, the child fell from a slide in the playground area and suffered a severe head injury. Plaintiff sued the City for negligently failing to maintain a safe depth…
Date: December 20, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 300
Docket Number: DA 11-0559
Justia Opinion Summary: After an agent with the Tri-Agency Safe Trails Task Force purchased quantities of marijuana from Defendants in excess of what was legal under the Medical Marijuana Act, law enforcement arrested Defendants. Officers…
Date: December 20, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 301
Docket Number: DA 11-0566
Justia Opinion Summary: Mike Alexander was one of two former employees of Bozeman Motors who filed suit against Bozeman Motors and its president and managers, alleging negligence, battery, and negligent or intentional infliction of emotional…
Date: December 20, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 299
Docket Number: DA 12-0317
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioners filed a complaint with the Montana Public Service Commission (PSC), alleging that Northwestern Energy had been overcharging consumes for its street lighting services. The PSC dismissed the petition. The…
Date: December 19, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 298
Docket Number: DA 11-0749
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff was injured in a car accident when the car in which he was a passenger and which Defendant was driving crashed after Defendant lost control of the vehicle. Plaintiff filed an action against Defendant seeking…
Date: December 18, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 293
Docket Number: DA 11-0740
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of attempted theft and sentenced to ten years imprisonment. Defendant appealed, arguing that the district court abused its discretion in finding a sufficient chain of custody…
Date: December 18, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 291
Docket Number: DA 12-0102
Justia Opinion Summary: In December 2004, Plaintiff, an on-duty law enforcement officer with the Federal Reserve Bank, was injured in an altercation on the bank premises with Defendant, who had trespassed onto the Federal Reserve property while…
Date: December 18, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 289
Docket Number: DA 12-0202
Justia Opinion Summary: Decedent's will divided his estate among his wife (Wife) and his sons and left to Wife all of their jointly-owned vehicles and other property. At the time of Decedent's death he and Wife owned a motor home as joint…
Date: December 18, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 292
Docket Number: DA 12-0267
Justia Opinion Summary: An underground mine with surface facilities located in Musselshell County (Musselshell) extended underground into Yellowstone County (Yellowstone) and produced coal mined from both Musselshell and Yellowstone. Based upon…
Date: December 18, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 290
Docket Number: DA 12-0282
Justia Opinion Summary: After the district court awarded the Department of Health and Human Services temporary legal custody of Mother's two children, the court adjudicated the children as youths in need of care. The State subsequently…
Date: December 17, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 288
Docket Number: DA 11-0451
Date: December 17, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 288
Docket Number: DA 11-0451
Date: December 17, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 288
Docket Number: DA 11-0451
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs in this case were individuals who were in committed same-sex relationships. Plaintiffs sued the State, contending that there was a statutory structure in Montana law that prohibited them from enjoying…
Date: December 11, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 282
Docket Number: DA 11-0496
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of two counts of sexual intercourse without consent and one count of sexual assault. Defendant appealed. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) under the circumstances…
Date: December 11, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 284
Docket Number: DA 11-0719
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to the felony offense of criminal possession with intent to distribute. The district court sentenced him to a three-year deferred imposition of sentence. Defendant appealed his conviction and…
Date: December 11, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 283
Docket Number: DA 12-0046
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff gave birth to Child at Hospital. Complications arose prior to and after Child's delivery, leading to problems with Child's brain development. Plaintiff, individually and on behalf of Child, later sued the…
Date: December 11, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 286N
Docket Number: DA 12-0088
Date: December 5, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 281
Docket Number: DA 11-0772
Justia Opinion Summary: After a youth violated the terms of his initial probation agreement, the judicial district youth court revoked that agreement and entered a dispositional order that extended the youth's probationary period for an…
Date: December 4, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 274
Docket Number: DA 11-0547
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of one count of incest. The district court sentenced Defendant to 100 years in the Montana State Prison with a possibility of parole after fifty years. The district court…
Date: December 4, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 275
Docket Number: DA 12-0122
Justia Opinion Summary: Brenette Garrett and Jason LeProwse were the biological parents of T.G. In September 2011, the justice court issued a temporary order of protection (TOP) against LeProwse pursuant to Mont. Code Ann. 40-15-201. Shortly…
Date: December 4, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 276
Docket Number: DA 12-0140
Justia Opinion Summary: In this dispute over real property, Roslyn Shephard, in her capacity as personal representative of the estates of real property owners (Lessors), terminated the third lease of Lessees based on an alleged violation of the…
Date: November 30, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 272
Docket Number: DA 11-0510
Justia Opinion Summary: Helena Sand and Gravel, Inc. (HSG) challenged Lewis and Clark County's decision to adopt a citizen-initiated proposal to configure a zoning district that favored residential uses and prohibited mining. The district court…
Date: November 27, 2012
Citations: 2011 MT 328, 2012 MT 271
Docket Number: DA 11-0081
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs sought a declaratory ruling that Mont. Code Ann. 13-35-227(1) violated their constitutional rights to free speech by prohibiting political expenditures by corporations on behalf of or opposing candidates for…
Date: November 20, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 265
Docket Number: DA 11-0351
Justia Opinion Summary: Shortly after Defendant was charged with DUI, she notified the police department that she believed she had been given a "date rape" drug that caused her impairment. Before trial commenced, Defendant claimed she would…
Date: November 20, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 263
Docket Number: DA 11-0585
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to felony arson for setting fire to a car and two dumpsters. After a sentencing hearing, the district court sentenced Defendant to a four-year suspended DOC commitment and required him to pay $1600…
Date: November 20, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 264
Docket Number: DA 11-0739
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff commenced an action in the district court seeking a preliminary injunction preventing Defendants, their neighbors, from crossing Plaintiff's land, or in the alternative, a declaratory judgment stating that…
Date: November 20, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 261
Docket Number: DA 12-0052
Justia Opinion Summary: Employee was injured while working for Employer. Because Employer failed to retain current worker's compensation insurance, Employee filed a claim with the Uninsured Employer's Fund, which the Fund accepted. The Fund…
Date: November 20, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 267
Docket Number: DA 12-0053
Justia Opinion Summary: Russell Sherman obtained loans for over $1,594,282 from the Whitefish Credit Union (WCU). Russell defaulted in paying the loans. WCU subsequently gave notice of default in a ten-day demand letter. Receiving no response…
Date: November 20, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 262
Docket Number: DA 12-0131
Justia Opinion Summary: This appeal pertained to the location of a partially-constructed horse barn in a planned unit development (PUD). Plaintiffs were the owner of the barn, the owner's contractor, and FPR Properties. After it was notified…
Date: November 13, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 259
Docket Number: DA 11-0325
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of attempted sexual intercourse without consent, a felony. The district court sentenced Defendant to Montana State Prison for a term of fifteen years, with five suspended. The Supreme Court…
Date: November 13, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 260
Docket Number: DA 11-0618
Justia Opinion Summary: Katherine Beehler-Goodson was the mother of minor children E.G. and R.G., the wife of Plaintiff Robert Goodson, and the sister of Plaintiff Tony Beehler. While Katherine was undergoing a myelogram, bacteria were…
Date: November 13, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 258
Docket Number: DA 12-0071
Justia Opinion Summary: The district court involuntarily committed and authorized the involuntary medication of thirty-year-old C.R. after it determined that he suffered from a mental disorder and that his condition met the statutory criteria…
Date: November 8, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 252
Docket Number: DA 11-0499
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of deliberate homicide stemming from the shooting death of his former roommate. On appeal, Defendant contended that the district court erred by instructing the jury it was prohibited from…
Date: November 7, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 251
Docket Number: DA 11-0472
Justia Opinion Summary: The State charged Defendant with DUI and two drug counts. The DUI count was charged as a felony because the State maintained that Defendant had three prior DUI convictions. Defendant had been convicted of DUI twice in…
Date: November 7, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 250
Docket Number: DA 11-0541
Justia Opinion Summary: After a trial, Defendant was convicted for driving under the influence. The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction, holding (1) the district court erroneously allowed the results of a horizontal gaze nystagmus and…
Date: November 7, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 249
Docket Number: DA 12-0120
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed a complaint against Defendants asserting that a tree on Defendants' property was a nuisance and trespass because it blocked Plaintiff's view. The district court dismissed the complaint for failing to…
Date: October 30, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 243
Docket Number: DA 11-0087
Justia Opinion Summary: A jury convicted Defendant of aggravated burglary and sexual intercourse without consent. Defendant argued on appeal that his convictions should be reversed because his standby counsel had a conflict of interest, the…
Date: October 30, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 241
Docket Number: DA 11-0744
Justia Opinion Summary: This was Defendant's second appeal to the Supreme Court. In the prior appeal, the Court affirmed Defendant's conviction of two counts of felony sexual assault and remanded the case for resentencing. The district court…
Date: October 30, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 245
Docket Number: DA 12-0017
Justia Opinion Summary: After a five-day trial, a jury decided that Appellee Bull River Country Store Properties, LLC was not negligent in connection with Appellants' claim that it sold water-contaminated diesel fuel. Appellants appealed the…
Date: October 30, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 242
Docket Number: DA 12-0050
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs were employees of Defendant Kalispell Regional Medical Center (KRMC). Defendant Northwest Healthcare Corporation (NWHC) was the parent corporation of the remaining defendant entities. This case arose out of a…
Date: October 30, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 246
Docket Number: DA 12-0080
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff owned and operated a ranch with an 18,000 square-foot lodge. Defendant was a custom manufacturer of high-end wood flooring from whom Plaintiff brought wood flooring while building the lodge. After it was…
Date: October 30, 2012
Citations: 2012 MT 213N, 2012 MT 248N
Docket Number: DA 12-0213
Date: October 30, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 244
Docket Number: DA 12-0318
Justia Opinion Summary: After Donald and Lora Wyrick filed for dissolution of their marriage, the district court struggled to resolve a convoluted child support arrangement that festered for nearly twenty years. Donald filed a motion for…
Date: October 29, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 240
Docket Number: DA 11-0667
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs, in anticipation of Revett Silver Company and RC Resources, Inc. (collectively, "Revett") seeking approval for mine-related construction under a general permit, filed this action against the Department of…
Date: October 23, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 236
Docket Number: DA 11-0721
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff submitted an application for a 119-lot subdivision, which the Board of Missoula County Commissioners denied. Plaintiff petitioned for judicial review of the Board's action and alternatively claimed that the…
Date: October 23, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 235
Docket Number: DA 12-0095
Justia Opinion Summary: After a bench trial in justice court, Defendant was convicted for DUI per se. At the close of the State's case-in-chief, Defendant moved the justice court to dismiss the charge on grounds of insufficient evidence,…
Date: October 23, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 238N
Docket Number: DA 12-0157
Date: October 23, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 238N
Docket Number: DA 12-0157
Date: October 23, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 234
Docket Number: DA 12-0184
Justia Opinion Summary: At issue on review in this case was whether the State Board of Land Commissioners properly issued leases to Ark Land Co., a subsidiary of Arch Coal, Inc., without first conducting environmental review under the Montana…
Date: October 22, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 232N
Docket Number: DA 12-0142
Date: October 22, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 231
Docket Numbers: DA 12-0073, DA 12-0145
Date: October 22, 2012
Citations: 2012 MT 231, 2012 MT 233N
Docket Numbers: DA 12-0073, DA 12-0145
Date: October 22, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 231
Docket Number: DA 12-0145
Justia Opinion Summary: After the Department of Public Health and Human Services was given temporary legal custody of D.B., a youth in need of care, the Department developed a treatment plan for Father. Following twenty months of poor…
Date: October 16, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 228
Docket Number: DA 12-0125
Justia Opinion Summary: Gail and Ron Armstrong began raising M.M.G. when the child was approximately one year old. M.M.G.'s mother, Arrah Lane, began leaving M.M.G. with the Armstrongs for weeks at a time until M.M.G. lived primarily with the…
Date: October 9, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 226
Docket Number: DA 11-0165
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Appellant Bobby Cooksey was convicted of deliberate homicide. The district court sentenced Appellant to a term of fifty years in prison with credit for time served. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding…
Date: October 9, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 227
Docket Number: DA 11-0352
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant appealed from his conviction in the district court of one count of felony aggravated assault. Appellant argued (1) his conviction should be reversed under the plain error doctrine because law enforcement failed…
Date: October 9, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 220
Docket Number: DA 12-0069
Justia Opinion Summary: C.R., D.B.J.'s step-father and guardian, appealed the termination of his guardianship of D.B.J, who was adjudicated to be a youth in need of care. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the district court did not…
Date: October 9, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 221
Docket Number: DA 12-0141
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed an action against a district court judge, seeking damages for the judge's acts or omissions while presiding over a telephone pretrial conference in a civil action then pending before him. At all relevant…
Date: October 9, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 222
Docket Number: DA 12-0151
Justia Opinion Summary: In this real property dispute about asserted easement rights, the district court ruled in favor of Defendant and in favor of Plaintiff on others. The court concluded neither party had "prevailed" as required by Mont.…
Date: October 9, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 219
Docket Number: DA 12-0158
Justia Opinion Summary: Employer terminated Employee's employment after receiving complaints regarding poor service and use of inappropriate language by Employee. The Department of Labor & Industry concluded Employee was not qualified for…
Date: October 2, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 215
Docket Number: DA 12-0121
Justia Opinion Summary: Johnson Farms, Inc. and Floyd Johnson filed a complaint against Ethel Halland alleging (1) in her capacity as secretary of Johnson Farms, Inc., Ethel breached her fiduciary duties by diverting corporate funds to herself…
Date: September 27, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 214N
Docket Number: DA 11-0580
Date: September 25, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 213
Docket Number: DA 11-0678
Justia Opinion Summary: James Turner and Julie Viers opened a line of credit with Wells Fargo Bank and granted Wells Fargo a deed of trust on property they owned as security for the line of credit. Later, John Turner, Christina Turner, and…
Date: September 25, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 212
Docket Number: DA 12-0022
Justia Opinion Summary: Sarah Wheeldon petitioned for dissolution of her marriage to Corey Wheeldon on April 20, 2009. Following a bench trial, the district court issued findings of fact, conclusions of law, and a decree of dissolution that…
Date: September 25, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 211
Docket Number: DA 12-0358
Date: September 25, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 211
Docket Number: DA 12-0358
Justia Opinion Summary: LR-123 was enacted by the Montana Legislature in 2011. It proposed a vote in the November 2012 general election on whether to provide a tax credit and potential tax refund, or outright State payment, to individuals in…
Date: September 18, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 208
Docket Number: DA 11-0743
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of felony partner or family member assault. The district court designated Defendant a persistent felony offender and committed him to the department of corrections (DOC) for…
Date: September 18, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 207
Docket Number: DA 11-0751
Justia Opinion Summary: After Employee made allegations about a fellow employee that Employer concluded were patently false, Employee was discharged. Employee applied to the Department of Labor and Industry Unemployment Insurance Division (UID)…
Date: September 18, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 206
Docket Number: DA 12-0116
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs filed suit seeking a judicial resolution of an LLC in which both Plaintiffs and Defendants held ownership interests. The district court ordered judicial dissolution and appointment of a receiver after finding…
Date: September 11, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 201
Docket Number: DA 11-0460
Justia Opinion Summary: The State appealed an order that preliminarily enjoined parts of the Montana Marijuana Act. Montana Cannabis Industry Association, Mark Matthews, Shirley Hamp, Shelly Yeager, Jane Doe, John Doe #1, John Doe #2, Michael…
Date: September 11, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 200
Docket Number: OP 12-0401
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner Caryn Lewis asked the Supreme Court to issue a writ of supervisory control over the Eighth Judicial District Court in Cascade County Cause No. ADV 10-895. The District Court action arose from a 2003 motor…
Date: September 5, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 198
Docket Number: DA 11-0431
Justia Opinion Summary: This case arose from claims asserted by multiple persons against Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Montana (BCBSMT) and Montana Comprehensive Health Association (MCHA). Claimants asserted that while they were fully insured…
Date: September 5, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 196N
Docket Number: DA 11-0530
Date: September 5, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 199
Docket Number: DA 11-0582
Justia Opinion Summary: Chris Otto appealed a district court's order that denied his motion to dismiss his felony driving under the influence (DUI) charge. The issue on appeal was whether the district court correctly determined that Otto's…
Date: September 5, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 194
Docket Number: DA 11-0691
Justia Opinion Summary: Mountain West Bank obtained a summary judgment against Helena Christian School and several individual defendants (HCS) following HCS’s default on loans from Mountain West. HCS appealed the decision of the Montana First…
Date: September 5, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 195
Docket Number: DA 12-0031
Justia Opinion Summary: Michael Hicks appealed a district court's order awarding Anthony Varano damages of $616.33 in a dispute following a snowmobiling trip the two took together. Varano allowed Hicks to borrow his snowmobile. The parties…
Date: September 4, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 191
Docket Number: DA 11-0458
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant Raul Sanchez appealed a district court order that denied his amended petition for postconviction relief. The issue on appeal was whether the court erred in doing so. Appellant admitted to shooting his…
Date: September 4, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 192
Docket Number: DA 11-0725
Justia Opinion Summary: The Montana Public Employees' Retirement Board (MPERB) denied death benefits to Petitioner Erene Briese (Erene) because her deceased husband, who had originally named her as his beneficiary under the Montana Sheriffs’…
Date: August 28, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 185
Docket Number: DA 11-0336
Justia Opinion Summary: Ralph Jentile appealed a district court decision that ordered him to pay for the repairs to two Whitefish Police Department patrol cars that collided with each other while pursuing Jentile. Jentile raised two issues on…
Date: August 28, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 186
Docket Number: DA 11-0338
Justia Opinion Summary: Darla Edward appealed a district court order that ordered her to pay restitution following a collision between her car and a bicyclist, and the ensuing court trial and sentencing. She raised four issues on appeal: (1)…
Date: August 28, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 187
Docket Number: DA 11-0759
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants Montana Department of Natural Resources and Montana Board of Land Commissioners (collectively, “the State”) appealed several portions of a district court's summary judgment order in the State’s quiet title…
Date: August 28, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 188N
Docket Number: DA 12-0098
Justia Opinion Summary: Birth mother N.S. (Mother) and birth father K.R. (Father) appealed a district court order that terminated their parental rights to their four-year-old twin daughters, T.R. 1 and T.R. 2. Mother also appealed the District…
Date: August 21, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 184
Docket Number: DA 11-0275
Justia Opinion Summary: Candice Brilz filed an action in Montana state court purportedly asserting statutory and common law bad-faith claims against Metropolitan General Insurance Company (Metropolitan). Metropolitan removed the action to…
Date: August 21, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 180
Docket Number: DA 11-0395
Justia Opinion Summary: A jury convicted Daniel John Paulsrud of deliberate homicide with a dangerous weapon in 2011. The district court sentenced Paulsrud to 110 years in the Montana State Prison without the possibility of parole. Paulsrud…
Date: August 21, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 181
Docket Number: DA 11-0593
Justia Opinion Summary: Faith Malpeli brought an inverse condemnation action against the Montana Department of Transportation (MDT), seeking compensation for the alleged taking of her property as a result of the reconstruction of Montana…
Date: August 21, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 179
Docket Number: DA 11-0612
Justia Opinion Summary: A jury found Jared Rosling guilty of deliberate homicide, aggravated kidnapping, aggravated burglary, tampering with or fabricating physical evidence, and criminal possession of dangerous drugs on October 18, 2004.…
Date: August 21, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 183N
Docket Number: DA 11-0625
Justia Opinion Summary: Gordon Sees The Ground, Jr. appealed a district court's order that denied his petition for postconviction relief. In 2008, Sees The Ground was convicted of felony DUI after Billings police officers found him slumped over…
Date: August 21, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 182N
Docket Number: DA 12-0154
Date: August 15, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 177
Docket Number: DA 09-0547
Justia Opinion Summary: Grant Creek Heights, Inc. and Kenneth R. Knie appealed a district court order that granted Missoula County’s third motion for summary judgment. Missoula County, Missoula County Commissioners, J. Fern Hart and Michael…
Date: August 15, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 178N
Docket Number: DA 11-0760
Justia Opinion Summary: Al Ballard and Ecosafe Gold Recovery, LLC (Ballard), appealed a district court's order entered following the Supreme Court’s remand in the first appeal of the case. The Supreme Court reversed the entry of judgment in…
Date: August 14, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 176
Docket Number: DA 11-0356
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant Robert Arthur Wing appealed his conviction on felony driving while under the influence of alcohol (fourth or subsequent offense). Appellant argued at trial that he had not been driving on the day of his arrest,…
Date: August 14, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 175
Docket Number: DA 11-0758
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2011, the State filed identical Petitions for Emergency Protective Services, Adjudication of Youths in Need of Care, and for Temporary Legal Custody in two causes involving K.H. and K.M., the daughters of Appellee…
Date: August 10, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 169
Docket Number: DA 11-0340
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff-Appellant Charles Fellows appealed a district court's order that dismissed his complaint. Plaintiff owned a water right in Spring Creek. He claimed that the flow of the creek was for many years recharged by…
Date: August 10, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 172
Docket Number: DA 11-0444
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2007, Defendant Ralph Fox was charged with two counts of felony sexual assault against minor females, CS (Count I) and HS (Count II). A federal grand jury handed down an indictment in the United States District Court…
Date: August 10, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 174N
Docket Number: DA 11-0517
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant Laurie Kay Corbino appealed a district court's judgment and order of commitment. Defendant entered into a plea agreement wherein she pled guilty to felony burglary. Defendant admitted to entering the Lendmans’…
Date: August 10, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 170
Docket Number: DA 11-0626
Justia Opinion Summary: This was a dispute over rights to use water from the Teton River in Montana. Giese, Kelly and Reichelt use water from the downstream portion of the Teton near Fort Benton, Montana. They claimed generally that they are…
Date: August 10, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 171
Docket Number: DA 12-0003
Justia Opinion Summary: Louis G. Hannum, Jr. (Louis Jr.) appealed a district court's order removing him for cause as the personal representative of the estate of Louis G. Hannum, Sr. (Louis Sr.). Louis Sr. passed away in 2010, and was survived…
Date: August 10, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 168
Docket Number: OP 12-0439
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioners brought an original proceeding to the Supreme Court to challenge the validity of Initiative 166. They requested the Court rule that the Attorney General and Secretary of State did not comply with their…
Date: August 9, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 166
Docket Number: DA 11-0477
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant Kingsley Ariegwe appealed a district court's denial of his petition for postconviction relief. Defendant virtually met a fifteen-year-old female in an internet chat room. After chatting, the two telephone one…
Date: August 9, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 167
Docket Number: DA 11-0708
Justia Opinion Summary: Pro se litigant Sharon McCrea appealed a district court's judgment that awarded over eight thousand dollars to CBM Collections, a Missoula collection agency. McCrea owned a business which had an outstanding credit card…
Date: August 3, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 165
Docket Number: DA 11-0120
Justia Opinion Summary: Sherman Anderson and other concerned residents of the City of Deer Lodge (Anderson) appealed a district court order that denied their petition for a writ of mandamus. The issue in this case arose from the revocation of…
Date: August 1, 2012
Citation: 2007 MT 334
Docket Number: AF 07-0157
Date: July 31, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 163
Docket Number: DA 11-0373
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant Larry Bomar appealed a district court order that dismissed his petition for postconviction relief, which alleged ineffective assistance of his trial counsel. Defendant alleged that his trial counsel's failure…
Date: July 31, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 162
Docket Number: DA 11-0435
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant Shawn Stoner appealed a district court's order to deny his motion to dismiss several marijuana charges against him. The sole issue on appeal was whether the District Court erred in denying Defendant's motion to…
Date: July 31, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 164
Docket Number: DA 11-0764
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant Larry Bomar appealed a district court order that dismissed his petition for postconviction relief, which alleged ineffective assistance of his trial counsel. Defendant alleged that his trial counsel's failure…
Date: July 24, 2012
Citation: 2007 MT 334
Docket Number: AF 07-0016
Date: July 24, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 158
Docket Number: DA 11-0136
Justia Opinion Summary: John Hood appealed a district court's decision to deny his motion to amend the parties' parenting plan. The parties had a "great deal" of difficulty working out a parenting and visitation plan though they lived n the…
Date: July 24, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 157
Docket Number: DA 11-0388
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant Christopher Robin Lewis appealed a district court judgment that found him ineligible for parole. In 2010, Defendant was charged with aggravated assault for the abuse of his minor sons. Nothing in Defendant's…
Date: July 24, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 156
Docket Number: DA 11-0427
Justia Opinion Summary: Richard Ford suffered a work-related injury to his neck. He was diagnosed with a cervical strain, and Sentry Casualty Company accepted liability and paid benefits for this injury. During Ford’s treatment, he underwent an…
Date: July 24, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 159
Docket Number: DA 11-0597
Justia Opinion Summary: In July 2009, Charles Albert’s Billings, Montana home caught fire. Despite response by the City of Billings Fire Department, the house burned to the ground. Albert sued the City for negligence of the Billings Fire…
Date: July 24, 2012
Citation: 1012 MT 161N
Docket Number: DA 12-0025
Justia Opinion Summary: Ober Spear appealed s district court order dismissing his wrongful discharge complaint. Spear had worked as a Montana Highway Patrol (MHP) trooper since 1958. He applied for permanent disability treatment in 1962. MHP…
Date: July 24, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 160N
Docket Number: DA 12-0093
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant William Parrish appealed a district court's decision to deny him postconviction relief. Defendant was convicted in 2008 of criminal endangerment, and the Supreme Court affirmed on direct appeal. In his petition…
Date: July 20, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 155
Docket Number: DA 11-0480
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant Buddy Wade Pirello appealed a district court order that denied his motion to dismiss one felony charge of criminal possession of dangerous drugs. Appellant argued that the pending charges should be dismissed on…
Date: July 20, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 154
Docket Number: DA 11-0500
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff-Appellant Shaune Kuszmaul appealed a district court order that granted summary judgment to Sterling Life Insurance Company (Sterling) on her wrongful discharge claim. Plaintiff worked as an outside sales agent…
Date: July 18, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 152
Docket Number: DA 11-0285
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant John Gordon Briscoe appealed his conviction for assault with a weapon. On appeal, Defendant contended the district court miscalculated his sentence based on a finding of lack of remorse, which he maintained was…
Date: July 10, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 149
Docket Number: DA 11-0344
Justia Opinion Summary: The district court entered judgment for the City of Cut Bank on Petitioner Arthur F. Rooney's complaint that he was wrongfully terminated from employment as a City police officer. Petitioner appealed the court's decision…
Date: July 10, 2012
Docket Number: DA 11-0344
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff Arthur Rooney appealed a district court's order in favor of Defendant City of Cut Bank in his wrongful termination suit. Plaintiff appealed the court's decision that his termination did not violate Montana's…
Date: July 10, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 151N
Docket Number: DA 11-0482
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant Scott Adams was charged in three separate proceedings in Ravalli County: (1) felony operating a motor vehicle with an alcohol concentration of 0.08 or more, fourth or subsequent offense, and a related…
Date: July 10, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 148N
Docket Number: DA 12-0019
Justia Opinion Summary: R.T. was born in 2009; his mother was killed in a car accident a year later. R.T.'s biological father was a minor at the time of the mother's death, and was living in a halfway house. R.T.'s maternal grandfather…
Date: July 10, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 150N
Docket Number: DA 12-0072
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff-Appellant John Dilley appealed the grant of summary judgment in favor of Defendant-Appellee City of Missoula. The district court concluded the City acted within its legal authority when it purchased the…
Date: July 6, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 143
Docket Number: DA 11-0404
Justia Opinion Summary: Respondent-Appellant Chad Cringle appealed a district court order that remanded his case to the Montana Human Rights Commission for further proceedings in his discrimination complaint against Petitioner-Appellee BNSF…
Date: July 6, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 146
Docket Number: DA 11-0475
Justia Opinion Summary: The Medical Marijuana Growers Association, Inc., Courier 1, Courier 2, Caregiver 1, Caregiver 2, and Caregiver 3 (collectively referred to as Plaintiffs) appealed an Order and Rationale on Defendant’s Motion for Summary…
Date: July 6, 2012
Citations: 2012 MT 145, 2102 MT 145
Docket Number: DA 11-0672
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner Dustin Robison appealed a district court order which reversed the findings of the State Tax Appeals Board (STAB) and reinstated the findings of the Montana Department of Revenue (DOR). This case concerned…
Date: July 6, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 147
Docket Number: OP 11-0463
Justia Opinion Summary: The United States District Court for the District of Montana, Helena Division certified the following question to this Court: "Is obesity that is not the symptom of a physiological condition a 'physical or mental…
Date: July 6, 2012
Citations: 2012 MT 144, 2012 MT 144A
Docket Number: OP 11-0558
Date: July 6, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 144
Docket Number: OP 11-0558
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner Billie L. Redding asked the Supreme Court to exercise supervisory control over the First Judicial District Court, Lewis and Clark County, and to conclude it was error for the District Court to grant partial…
Date: July 3, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 140N
Docket Number: DA 11-0192
Justia Opinion Summary: Mary and David W. Johnson were married on June 12, 1993. In May 2003, David filed a petition for dissolution and in June 2003 the parties entered a Settlement Agreement, which distributed the marital estate. Mary was…
Date: July 3, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 139N
Docket Number: DA 11-0655
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant-Appellant Robert Shipley appealed a district court order which granted summary judgment in favor of Plaintiff-Appellee BNSF Railway Company. BNSF leased commercial property in Miles City, Montana, to Shipley.…
Date: July 3, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 141N
Docket Number: DA 12-0018
Date: July 3, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 142N
Docket Number: DA 12-0045
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants James J. and Linda L. Clark appealed a district court order that approved the filing of an amended certificate of survey, approved a settled agreement, and required each party to pay one-half of the fees and…
Date: July 2, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 138N
Docket Number: DA 11-0403
Justia Opinion Summary: Pro se Defendant Ronald Petersen appealed a district court order that denied his petition for post-conviction relief and his motion to suppress his confession. In January 2009, Defendant pled guilty to Deliberate…
Date: June 26, 2012
Citations: 2012 MT 115, 2012 MT 115A
Docket Number: DA 11-0315
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant Thomas Evans appealed the revocation of his suspended sentence. In 2003, Defendant pled guilty to issuing bad checks for which he was sentenced to a five-year commitment to the Department of Corrections.…
Date: June 26, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 136N
Docket Number: DA 11-0567
Justia Opinion Summary: Davie Lin Lloyd (Davie) appealed a Parenting Plan Order entered by the district court. Davie and Brett Camaron Lloyd (Brett) were married in 1997, and are the parents of one minor child, M.K.L. In 2004, the district…
Date: June 26, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 132
Docket Number: DA 11-0700
Justia Opinion Summary: Glacier Kitchens, Inc., CR Weaver Trust, and the Estate of Grace Weaver (collectively "Defendants") appealed the denial of their motion to set aside the default judgments issued against them in district court. Weaver…
Date: June 26, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 133
Docket Number: DA 11-0728
Justia Opinion Summary: The State Department of Labor and Industry appealed a district court's order that reversed the Department's decision regarding Petitioner Sheila Callahan & Friends, Inc. (SC&F). SC&F, a radio broadcasting company entered…
Date: June 26, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 135N
Docket Number: DA 11-0732
Justia Opinion Summary: The district court entered a decree in 2011 dissolving the marriage of Petitioner Aylynn King (Aly) and Joseph King (Joe) and establishing a parenting plan with respect to their two-and-a-half-year-old child, B.K. Aly…
Date: June 26, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 137
Docket Number: DA 12-0047
Justia Opinion Summary: I.M. (Father) appealed a district court order that terminated his parental rights to his children A.J.M (daughter) and C.J.M. (son). The children's biological mother already had her parental rights to terminated. The…
Date: June 26, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 134
Docket Number: OP 12-0182
Justia Opinion Summary: Petitioner Emily Blodgett petitioned the Supreme Court for a Writ of Supervisory Control alleging that the Missoula County Justice Court violated sections 3-10-231 through -234, MCA; Article VII Sections 1 and 5 of the…
Date: June 19, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 129
Docket Number: DA 11-0446
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant James Davis appealed from his conviction of one count of criminal distribution of dangerous drugs by accountability, claiming that the State presented insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt…
Date: June 19, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 131
Docket Number: DA 11-0493
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant Michael Miller was convicted of the deliberate homicide after a jury trial. The Supreme Court affirmed his conviction. Miller subsequently filed a petition for postconviction relief, alleging his trial counsel…
Date: June 19, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 128
Docket Number: DA 11-0537
Justia Opinion Summary: At issue in this case was the Montana Board of Oil & Gas Conservation's (MBOGC) issuance of twenty-three gas well permits to Fidelity Exploration and Production Company in the area known as the Cedar Creek Anticline…
Date: June 19, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 130N
Docket Number: DA 11-0731
Date: June 19, 2012
Citations: 2012 MT 106, 2012 MT 106A
Docket Number: OP 11-0741
Justia Opinion Summary: This matter involved two cases, one involving two youths who appeared in youth court for detention hearings and one involving an adult who pled guilty to driving under the influence in justice court. After appearing in…
Date: June 12, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 124
Docket Number: DA 11-0414
Justia Opinion Summary: The State charged Anthony Leyva with sexual intercourse without consent. Pursuant to a plea agreement, the State dismissed the charge and filed an amended information charging Leyva with burglary by remaining unlawfully…
Date: June 12, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 125
Docket Number: DA 11-0746
Justia Opinion Summary: The district court determined that Plaintiffs Nigel and Jami Davis held an easement over the properties of Defendants, four property owners, and that the Davises could use the easement for the purpose of accessing their…
Date: June 5, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 121
Docket Number: DA 11-0595
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant entered into a contract for deed for the sale and purchase of Plaintiffs' building. After Defendant discontinued making payments and failed to pay property taxes as required by the contract, Plaintiffs obtained…
Date: June 1, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 120
Docket Number: DA 11-0030
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant Cale Hauer was convicted of unlawful restraint, assault with a weapon, partner or family member assault, and aggravated assault. Hauser was sentenced to eighteen months' incarceration and…
Date: May 29, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 115
Docket Number: DA 11-0315
Justia Opinion Summary: Thomas Evans pleaded guilty to felony issuance of bad checks and received a suspended sentence. Evans was subsequently charged with misdemeanor partner or family member assault. As a result, the district court revoked…
Date: May 29, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 114
Docket Number: DA 11-0321
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellee Dawn Lewton filed a petition for separation in the district court from Appellant John Lewton. The petition for separation was converted into a petition for dissolution. Following a trial, the district court…
Date: May 29, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 116
Docket Number: DA 11-0488
Date: May 29, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 116
Docket Number: DA 11-0488
Justia Opinion Summary: Cassadie and Chris Parish were injured in a motor vehicle accident when their vehicle was struck by an uninsured driver. United Financial Casualty Insurance Company (UFC) provided insurance coverage to the Parishes,…
Date: May 29, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 113
Docket Number: DA 11-0650
Justia Opinion Summary: While driving his motorcycle, William Cleary struck a deer. Cleary was transported to the hospital, where a consensual blood alcohol content test revealed a BAC of .18. The State filed an information charging Cleary with…
Date: May 29, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 119
Docket Number: DA 11-0695
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1976 Cecilia Kincaid Bates, grantor, and co-trustees George Kincaid and Richard Peterson entered into a trust agreement establishing the Cecilia Kincaid Gift Trust for George. George was Cecilia's son and died in…
Date: May 18, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 111
Docket Number: DA 12-0187
Justia Opinion Summary: The Montana Legislature enacted Senate Bill 268 (SB 268), which submitted to the electorate the question whether certain statutory changes should be made regarding the election of justices to the Montana Supreme Court.…
Date: May 16, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 110
Docket Number: OP 12-0155
Justia Opinion Summary: The child abuse and neglect proceedings (DN cases) at issue here commenced with the filing of a petition for emergency protective services, adjudication as youth in need of care and temporary legal custody. Parent was…
Date: May 15, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 105
Docket Number: DA 11-0440
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellees, Kristine Kittleson and James Kurtzenacker, purchased property pursuant to a warranty deed that referenced surveys conducted by Davis Surveying. Appellants, Davis Surveying and Kenneth Davis claimed they had…
Date: May 15, 2012
Citations: 2012 MT 106N, 2012 MT 108N
Docket Number: DA 11-0674
Date: May 15, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 108N
Docket Number: OP 11-0741
Justia Opinion Summary: At issue in these two consolidated appeals was whether the district court properly calculated the time period in which to file a motion for substitution of district judge in youth court and on an appeal from justice…
Date: May 8, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 101
Docket Number: DA 11-0544
Justia Opinion Summary: Tristeana Johnson was found guilty of the charge of criminal possession of marijuana, a misdemeanor. Johnson appealed the court's order denying her motion to dismiss the charge of criminal possession of marijuana and the…
Date: May 8, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 100
Docket Number: DA 11-0577
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant Daniel Burns pleaded guilty to one felony count of sexual abuse of children. The Supreme Court remanded for the purpose of striking a portion of the district court's restitution order. Burns subsequently filed…
Date: May 8, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 102
Docket Number: DA 11-0668
Justia Opinion Summary: Jennifer and Elo Nielsen commenced an action against Andreas Hornsteiner seeking injunctive relief and damages for actions Hornsteiner took that allegedly interfered with the Nielsens' use of their easement. Horsteiner…
Date: May 4, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 99
Docket Number: DA 11-0641
Justia Opinion Summary: Trent Trier was charged with operating a motor vehicle with an alcohol concentration of 0.08 percent BAC or greater. The justice court explained that upon demand of a jury trial, the final pretrial conference required…
Date: May 2, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 98
Docket Number: DA 11-0412
Justia Opinion Summary: On August 9, 2007, Philip Boude filed a Federal Employers' Liability Act claim against his employer, Union Pacific Railroad Company, asserting that he experienced a work-related injury on July 29, 2006 due to the…
Date: May 1, 2012
Citations: 2012 MT 70, 2012 MT 70A
Docket Number: DA 11-0044
Justia Opinion Summary: Jeffrey Hardman was found guilty by a jury of deliberate homicide and tampering with the evidence. The district court sentenced Hardman to 110 years in prison with no parole eligibility for thirty years. Hardman appealed…
Date: May 1, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 95
Docket Number: DA 11-0284
Justia Opinion Summary: A jury convicted George Moore of felony driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. The district court sentenced Moore to thirteen months' incarceration followed by a suspended commitment to the department of…
Date: May 1, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 97
Docket Number: DA 11-0570
Justia Opinion Summary: After Brandon Burns was charged with felony DUI, Burns entered into a non-binding plea agreement with the State requiring the State to recommend a fifteen year prison sentence with five years suspended. The plea…
Date: May 1, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 96
Docket Number: DA 11-0615
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant Marla Ward filed suit seeking damages for personal injuries she sustained as she was sorting horses on Appellee Paul Johnson's property. Johnson resided in Pondera County. Johnson filed a motion to change…
Date: April 24, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 91
Docket Number: DA 11-0489
Justia Opinion Summary: Prior to the marriage of Todd Feeley and Anne Nang Loi, Anne inherited or was gifted money from the sale of her family's business. Anne filed for dissoluion of the parties' marriage in 2009. At trial, Anne alleged that…
Date: April 24, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 89
Docket Number: DA 11-0556
Justia Opinion Summary: Oliver Arlington was employed by Miller's Trucking as a log truck driver and loader operator pursuant to an oral employment agreement. For his work, Miller's paid Arlington twenty-five percent of the "load rate" as…
Date: April 24, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 90
Docket Number: DA 11-0620
Justia Opinion Summary: After Michael Johnson and Laura Wendlandt divorced, the couple's child, P.J., lived with Laura. Montana Child Protective Services later began investigating allegations that Michael sexually abused P.J. Laura filed an ex…
Date: April 23, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 88
Docket Number: DA 11-0464
Justia Opinion Summary: This appeal arose from a dispute between two neighboring property owners regarding a workshop addition to the home of Appellants, Neil and Seth Milner (Milner). The addition violated the city's setback requirement, and…
Date: April 19, 2012
Docket Number: DA 11-0586
Justia Opinion Summary: David Green pled guilty to felony aggravated assault and was sentenced to twenty years, with fifteen years suspended upon conditions. The conditions included the requirement that Green not use or possess illegal drugs.…
Date: April 17, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 86
Docket Number: DA 11-0241
Justia Opinion Summary: A jury unanimously found Defendant Joel St. Germain guilty of four counts of incest and four counts of sexual intercourse without consent for sexually abusing his stepdaughter. The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's…
Date: April 17, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 84
Docket Number: DA 11-0376
Justia Opinion Summary: Pursuant to a plea agreement, Richard Melton pleaded guilty of failing to comply with the Sexual or Violent Offender Registration Act. The district court committed Melton to the Department of Corrections for two years,…
Date: April 17, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 83
Docket Number: DA 11-0473
Justia Opinion Summary: After a dispute over the purchase of a motor coach, Plaintiff brought suit against Defendants, a used car salesman, a used car dealership, and a bank, asserting claims of, inter alia, breach of contract, fraud, and…
Date: April 17, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 81
Docket Number: DA 11-0545
Justia Opinion Summary: The Town filed an application with the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) seeking approval for proposed changes to its municipal well water rights. The DNRC notified the Town that its…
Date: April 17, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 82
Docket Number: DA 11-0621
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants, three licensed clinic psychologists, were former partners of Great Falls Clinic, LLP, a general limited liability partnership comprised of medical professionals. The Clinic partners, including Appellants,…
Date: April 10, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 76
Docket Number: DA 11-0050
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Roger Labbe was convicted of partner or family partner assault. Labbe appealed, contending that the district court erred by (1) denying his motion to suppress statements he made to police outside his…
Date: April 10, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 77
Docket Number: DA 11-0420
Justia Opinion Summary: Lake Cabin Development entered into two separate written agreements with the Robert Hurly and John Hurly families to purchase their respective properties. Pursuant to an agreement, Lake Cabin provided Robert Hurly with a…
Date: April 10, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 79
Docket Number: DA 11-0474
Justia Opinion Summary: A dispute arose between Cascade Development, Inc. and the City of Bozeman. On December 7, 2007, Cascade filed a complaint alleging various claims against Bozeman. A summons and complaint were issued by the clerk's office…
Date: April 10, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 75
Docket Number: DA 11-0520
Justia Opinion Summary: Casey Stuivnga and Britni Evans were injured in a single-vehicle accident. The vehicle was owned by Stuivenga. Both Stuivenga and Evans claimed the other person was driving and was liable to the other for their injuries.…
Date: April 10, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 78
Docket Number: DA 11-0664
Justia Opinion Summary: The State removed two minor children from Mother's care and began abuse and neglect proceedings against Mother. The children were later adjudicated to be youths in need of care. After a dispositional hearing, the…
Date: April 3, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 74
Docket Number: DA 11-0438
Justia Opinion Summary: Tina Blackmore filed a complaint against Marvin Dunster alleging damages arising from an assault and unlawful restraint. The district court entered a judgment against Dunster. Dunster subsequently filed an unrelated…
Date: April 3, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 72
Docket Number: DA 11-0565
Justia Opinion Summary: Clayton DeVoe applied for a building permit for a large storage building to be located on a lot in an area zoned for single-family residences. The City of Missoula issued a building permit pursuant to applicable zoning…
Date: April 2, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 70
Docket Number: DA 11-0044
Justia Opinion Summary: Jeffrey Hardman was found guilty by a jury of deliberate homicide and tampering with evidence. The district court sentenced Hardman to 110 years in prison with no parole eligibility for thirty years. Hardman appealed his…
Date: March 27, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 69
Docket Number: DA 11-0283
Justia Opinion Summary: Douglas Kirn was charged with two felony counts of assault on a police officer by causing reasonable apprehension of serious bodily injury by use of a weapon. The matter proceeded to a jury trial, and Kirn was convicted.…
Date: March 22, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 68
Docket Number: DA 11-0445
Justia Opinion Summary: Kevin Kichnet was babysitting his young nieces when he met three-year-old Eternity after the Head Start bus dropped her off after school. Kichnet was allegedly holding her hand as they crossed the street when Eternity…
Date: March 20, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 67
Docket Number: DA 11-0492
Justia Opinion Summary: Employee, a truck driver, resigned from his employment with Employer after he developed arthritis. Employee later filed an occupational disease claim, which the Montana State Fund (MSF) denied. The Workers' Compensation…
Date: March 20, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 66
Docket Number: DA 11-0528
Justia Opinion Summary: After receiving reports of an erratic driver, a deputy sheriff approached the driver of a truck matching the report's description and asked the driver, William Muller, to perform a field sobriety test and to take a…
Date: March 13, 2012
Docket Number: DA 11-0304
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant Michell Anders was found unconscious and lying face down on the floor of a movie store. After several police officers and EMTs arrived on the scene and were unsuccessful at reviving Anders, one of the officers…
Date: March 13, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 59N
Docket Number: DA 11-0449
Date: March 13, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 63
Docket Number: DA 11-0486
Justia Opinion Summary: Judith LaPlante filed an action in tribal court against Town Pump, Inc. and Major Brands Distributing Imports, Inc. (collectively, Defendants). The case was eventually dismissed by the Ninth Circuit, which ruled that the…
Date: March 13, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 61
Docket Number: OP 11-0526
Justia Opinion Summary: Employee filed a workers' compensation claim against Employer. Employer's Insurer accepted liability for Employee's claim. Insurer contracted with third-party Adjuster to provide services for Employee's claim. Employee…
Date: March 6, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 47
Docket Number: DA 10-0548
Justia Opinion Summary: Judith Newman (Newman), mother and personal representative of the estate of Karlye Newman (Karlye), appealed from certain pretrial and trial rulings made in the district court concerning the suicidal death of Karlye…
Date: March 6, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 50
Docket Number: DA 11-0149
Justia Opinion Summary: Lionel Ellison was convicted in the county justice court of misdemeanor party or family member assault. He appealed the conviction to the district court. Ellison subsequently appealed from an order of the district court…
Date: March 6, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 52
Docket Number: DA 11-0193
Justia Opinion Summary: John Lacey was convicted in district court for sexual intercourse without consent based on his sexual intercourse with a minor while the minor was either asleep or intoxicated. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the…
Date: March 6, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 51
Docket Number: DA 11-0236
Justia Opinion Summary: H&H Development, LLC hired Jim Ramlow for legal services. In 2007, H&H filed a pro se complaint in Lake County against Ramlow and his law firm for professional negligence. Eleven days later, H&H, through counsel, filed a…
Date: March 6, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 49
Docket Number: DA 11-0374
Justia Opinion Summary: Before being arrested for DUI, Richard Bollman underwent the horizontal gaze nystagmus (HGN) test. Bollman was subsequently convicted of his fifth DUI offense, a felony, after a jury trial. The Supreme Court affirmed the…
Date: March 6, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 48
Docket Number: DA 11-0521
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2007, Scottie and Dawn Pederson (the Pedersons) and Rocky Mountain Bank (the Bank) entered into a construction loan agreement pursuant to which the Bank agreed to lend the Pedersons several thousand dollars. In 2008,…
Date: February 29, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 46
Docket Number: DA 11-0329
Justia Opinion Summary: Husband and Wife filed for divorce. During the dissolution proceeding, a guardian ad litem (GAL), who was appointed for the parties' two daughters, recommended co-parenting with equal visitation by both parents. At the…
Date: February 28, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 44
Docket Number: DA 10-0547
Justia Opinion Summary: M.W., a juvenile who admitted that he committed sexual assault, was adjudged as delinquent and placed on probation until the age of eighteen, subject to numerous conditions. After M.W. was unsuccessfully discharged from…
Date: February 28, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 45
Docket Number: DA 11-0379
Justia Opinion Summary: Husband and Wife divorced in 2003. A final parenting plan was incorporated into their divorce decree allocating parenting time in regard to Child. In 2011, Wife filed a motion to amend the parenting plan. The district…
Date: February 24, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 43
Docket Number: DA 11-0049
Justia Opinion Summary: Patterson Enterprises hired Archie Johnson Contracting (AJC) to perform blasting on a road construction project. During the project, an entire section of rock above one of Patterson's excavators collapsed, crushing it.…
Date: February 21, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 41N
Docket Number: DA 11-0204
Date: February 21, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 40
Docket Number: DA 11-0243
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Jimmy Booth was charged with, inter alia, felony criminal possession of precursors to dangerous drugs pursuant to Mont. Code Ann. 45-9-107. Booth appealed, claiming that the State presented…
Date: February 21, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 42N
Docket Number: DA 11-0574
Date: February 14, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 33
Docket Number: DA 11-0031
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant Wesley Benn was convicted by a jury of sexual intercourse without consent and sexual assault. Benn appealed and then died the following month. Counsel for Benn filed a notice advising that Benn had passed away,…
Date: February 14, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 34
Docket Number: DA 11-0058
Justia Opinion Summary: Rozell Cook pled guilty via an Alford plea to two charges of felony sexual assault. Cook was sentenced to two concurrent, twenty-year terms with ten years suspended. The State moved to revoke the suspended portion of…
Date: February 14, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 36
Docket Number: DA 11-0309
Justia Opinion Summary: After Susan Brady, who was driving, reported that another driver in a pickup truck had been engaging in illegal activity, a highway patrol trooper pulled over a pickup truck matching Brady's description. The driver of…
Date: February 14, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 35
Docket Number: DA 11-0354
Justia Opinion Summary: Jerome Dubiel (Jerome) was traveling on a Montana highway during a high wind event that caused numerous trees to blow down. Jerome was stopped temporarily by a Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) employee who was…
Date: February 14, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 32
Docket Number: DA 11-0382
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants, a group of individuals, filed a complaint with the Montana Public Service Commission (PSC) against NorthWestern Energy (NWE) concerning NWE's provision of street lighting services. The PSC dismissed the…
Date: February 8, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 31
Docket Number: DA 10-0426
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Richard Covington was convicted of robbery and deliberate homicide. The court issued a life sentence without the possibility of parole based on Covington's two previous robbery convictions pursuant to…
Date: February 7, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 27
Docket Number: DA 10-0481
Justia Opinion Summary: After giving birth to a newborn who suffered severe developmental issues resulting from a lack of glucose, Joe and Kathryn Norris (Norris) filed a medical malpractice action against, among others, Dr. Blayne Fritz, a…
Date: February 7, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 26
Docket Number: DA 11-0040
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant Charles Clary was charged with aggravated burglary and assault with a weapon. The day before the omnibus hearing, Clary's attorney filed a motion to have Clary transported to the proceeding. The district court…
Date: February 7, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 29
Docket Number: DA 11-0288
Justia Opinion Summary: Lila Clavin (Lila) and Robert Gilbert founded Pastimes and executed an operating agreement (Agreement) that provided that Pastimes would terminate upon the death of a member unless at least two members remained who…
Date: February 7, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 30N
Docket Number: DA 11-0563
Date: February 7, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 28
Docket Number: OP 11-0021
Justia Opinion Summary: Burglington Northern & Sante Fe Railway Company (BNSF) contaminated the environment surrounding the Livingston Rail Yard (Yard). Plaintiffs, individuals who owned property adjacent to the Yard, sued BNSF in federal court…
Date: February 1, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 25
Docket Number: DA 11-0166
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant Wife filed for dissolution of her marriage to Husband. The district court found the marriage to be irretrievably broken, divided property between the parties, ordered Husband to pay child support and Wife's…
Date: February 1, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 20
Docket Number: DA 11-0272
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Susan Miner was convicted of the offense of assault on a peace officer, a felony. Miner appealed, arguing that she received ineffective assistance of counsel because her counsel did not move for a…
Date: February 1, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 23
Docket Number: DA 11-0289
Justia Opinion Summary: Carl Murphy was injured while shopping at Home Depot. Murphy subsequently sued Home Depot. Counsel for both parties then began negotiating a settlement offer, but no settlement documents were executed. Home Depot moved…
Date: February 1, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 22
Docket Number: DA 11-0342
Justia Opinion Summary: Randall Simms was injured during his employment. The Montana State Fund (MSF) provided workers compensation to Simms' employer, and later, paid continuing medical benefits for Simms. MSF subsequently utilized the…
Date: February 1, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 21
Docket Number: DA 11-0483
Justia Opinion Summary: The City of Dillon entered an agreement with the McNeills allowing them to connect to a water main for their domestic water supply. Later, the City granted permission to the McNeills to activate an existing water service…
Date: January 31, 2012
Citation: 2007 MT 334
Docket Number: AF 07-0157
Date: January 31, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 18
Docket Number: DA 10-0553
Justia Opinion Summary: Phil and Valerie married in 2003 and commenced dissolution proceedings in 2005. After five years of litigation, the district court held bifurcated bench trials to address three separate aspects of the dissolution: the…
Date: January 31, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 14
Docket Number: DA 11-0209
Justia Opinion Summary: Kevin and June Funk were married in 1990. In 1996, Kevin inherited several acres of lakefront and non-lakefront property, several vehicles, and an undisclosed amount of cash. June filed for dissolution in 2009. In…
Date: January 31, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 15
Docket Number: DA 11-0213
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants and Bank entered a loan agreement in which Bank agreed to lend Appellants $5 million. After Bank refused to disburse further funds under the loan, Appellants sued Bank. Bank was represented by the Crowley…
Date: January 31, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 16
Docket Number: DA 11-0260
Justia Opinion Summary: Following a jury trial, Rhonda Hall was sentenced on her conviction of charges of obstructing a peace officer, disorderly conduct, and assault with a bodily fluid. At the conclusion of the City's case, the district court…
Date: January 31, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 19
Docket Number: DA 11-0335
Justia Opinion Summary: The Wagners owned property along a river, which was subject to restrictive covenants. Brian Woodward purchased adjacent property that was subject to the same covenants. Woodward later added onto the deck of the home he…
Date: January 31, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 17
Docket Number: DA 11-0561
Justia Opinion Summary: The City of Dillon filed a civil action against George Warner seeking to recover the costs of installation of a water meter. Judge Gregory Mohr ruled on several motions filed by the city and conducted a scheduling…
Date: January 24, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 13
Docket Number: DA 11-0428
Justia Opinion Summary: James Whealon was employed by the Anaconda School District pursuant to a series of employment contracts. Upon retirement, Whealon filed a formal grievance, asserting that, under the terms of his contract, he was entitled…
Date: January 17, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 12
Docket Number: DA 11-0097
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant Blaine Fadness was convicted of three counts of attempted deliberate homicide. One of the conditions of Defendant's suspended sentence was that he not own, possess, or be in control of any…
Date: January 17, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 8
Docket Number: DA 11-0187
Justia Opinion Summary: Husband appealed from the findings of fact, conclusions of law, and decree of dissolution entered by the district court, which dissolved the marriage of Husband and Wife, determined Husband's child support obligation,…
Date: January 17, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 10
Docket Number: DA 11-0201
Date: January 17, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 10
Docket Number: DA 11-0201
Justia Opinion Summary: Hobble Diamond Ranch, Robert and Susan Burch, and James Lowe, (collectively, Neighbors), appealed the district court's judgment affirming the Montana Department of Transportation's (DOT) decision to issue billboard sign…
Date: January 17, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 9
Docket Number: DA 11-0349
Justia Opinion Summary: T.M.L. was seventeen when he pled guilty to felony burglary and misdemeanor criminal trespass to vehicles. The youth court entered a dispositional order providing that T.M.L. be placed on probation until he reached age…
Date: January 10, 2012
Citation: 2010 MT 3
Docket Number: DA 11-0347
Justia Opinion Summary: Edna Banco filed a claim for workers' compensation benefits for an occupational disease (OD) in her right shoulder. Banco worked concurrently at 4B's Restaurant and the Child Development Center on Malmstrom Air Force…
Date: January 3, 2012
Citation: 2012 MT 1
Docket Number: DA 10-0614
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Charles Branham was found guilty of mitigated deliberate homicide for the fatal stabbing of Miachel Kinross-Wright and was sentenced to forty years' incarceration without the possibility of parole.…
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