Big Sky Blawg

Cooper was arrested after a traffic stop in which she failed field sobriety tests and was cited for DUI. A motion to suppress evidence gathered after the traffic stop on the basis that the trooper who stopped her lacked particularized suspicion, was denied. Cooper appealed and SCOMONT sustained.

After pulling her over, the trooper told Cooper that the reason he had initiated the stop was because snow obstructed the view of her license plate. However, he testified to many other factors including that:

• he pickup truck did not come to a stop before entering the highway, but “abruptly” pulled out onto the highway in front of Kloster, forcing him to take evasive action to avoid a possible crash;
• Cooper crossed the fog line and performed a U-turn; and
• Cooper was driving incredibly slowly

SCOMOT ruled that “[the trooper’s] articulable facts included his observation of Cooper’s truck pulling into oncoming traffic, nearly causing a collision; Cooper leaving the parking lot of a bar hosting a special event known to serve alcohol; Cooper driving incredibly slow; and Cooper’s truck traveling over the fog line.” This justified a particularized suspicion and legitimized the stop making the evidence obtained admissible.

Justice Nelson concurred to note that the obscured license plate alone would not have justified sufficient particularized suspicion for detaining Cooper. Nelson argued that snow obscuring a plate is not sufficient to justify a traffic stop in Montana during the winter, arguing that reading MCA § 61-3-301(1)(a) in this fashion would produce an absurd result and, therefore, should be avoided. However, given the additional reasons for the stop, Nelson concurred.

A possible demise for Montana’s death penalty vanished today when Senate Bill 236 failed to make it past the state House Judiciary Committee by a vote of 10-8.  Although it had narrowly passed the Republican controlled Senate, this failure makes it unlikely that the bill will return this year.  

Proponents of SB 236 argued that executing a convicted criminal costs more than imprisoning him for life without parole.  This, combined with the risk of executing an innocent man simply make the law too costly in all senses of the word.

Those arguing to keep the death penalty say that some crimes are so heinous that ending the convict’s life is the only appropriate response.  Additionally, they claim the deterrent aspect of capital punishment serve an important purpose and should not be ignored.

Churchill once said something to the effect of democracy being the worst form of government, except all the others.  The same could probably be said for our judicial system. For all the many benefits, it is all too fallible.  Headlines abound announcing newly tested DNA evidence that has set free a man on death row.  Personally, I simply find the risk too great.

Last month, at a news conference, Attorney General Eric Holder said that there would be no more federal prosecutions of cases involving medical cannabis dispensaries. He said they would be left alone as long as they were complying with state laws.  The decision affects Montana and 12 other states that have legalized marijuana for medical purposes: Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington state.

Meanwhile, a Montana bill seeking to expand the State’s medical marijuana program has passed the Senate and is beginning hearings in the House.  Senate Bill 326 increases the amount of marijuana that a patient or “caregiver” can possess, from one ounce to three ounces. It also allows patients to get the drug from more than one licensed caregiver, allows licensed growers to have six “mature” plants rather than just six plants, and adds some additional medical conditions or diseases that can be legally treated by marijuana, such as Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes and post- traumatic stress syndrome.

Click here to read the text of SB 326