Montana Murder Law

In general, homicide is the intentional killing of a human being by another human being. Criminal homicide is any unlawful killing done with intent or malice. In most states, malice means acting with intent to kill the victim or acting in a way that death is likely to result.

Montana uses “purposely or knowingly” instead of “malice aforethought.” Unlike other states, Montana law does not have degrees of murder, such as first-degree or second-degree. Instead, all homicides are either deliberate or negligent.

Montana Homicide Laws

Montana law has five types of criminal homicide. Homicide is either deliberate, meaning the defendant intended to kill the victim, or negligent, where the defendant causes the victim’s death through carelessness or recklessness.

Deliberate Homicide

Deliberate homicide means purposely or knowingly causing the death of another human being. In Montana, a jury can infer the defendant’s mental state or intent from the fact that they committed a homicide without other justification or defense. For instance, pushing someone off a cliff knowing they will die, even without an intent to do so, is deliberate homicide in Montana.

Montana does not have a separate felony murder statute. Montana code makes a death in the commission of certain enumerated felonies, the attempt to commit such a felony, or in flight from such a felony, a deliberate homicide.

Causing the death of a fetus with the knowledge that a woman is pregnant is deliberate homicide. Montana code has an exception for abortions performed by a medical professional with the woman’s consent.

Mitigated Deliberate Homicide

Mitigated deliberate homicide is a deliberate homicide committed under the influence of extreme mental or emotional stress. Other states call the same offense second-degree murder or voluntary manslaughter. The defendant must have a reasonable explanation for the emotional stress.

The defendant or prosecution may present evidence of mitigating circumstances. This is not considered an affirmative defense. The "reasonable person" standard determines whether the explanation is enough for the emotional stress.

Mitigated deliberate homicide is a lesser included offense of deliberate homicide, but not if the offense is deemed felony murder. A jury can find a defendant guilty of mitigated deliberate homicide if the defendant kills their spouse, but not if a death occurs during a robbery.

Negligent Homicide

A negligent homicide is one where the defendant caused the victim’s death through carelessness or recklessness. Some states call this involuntary manslaughter.

Vehicular Homicide

Causing the death of another person while driving under the influence is a felony. This applies to impairment from drugs or alcohol.

Aiding or Soliciting Suicide

Aiding or encouraging another person to commit suicide is a separate crime under the statute only if the individual does not die. If the individual dies, even if by suicide, the charge is deliberate homicide.

Under the 2009 court ruling Baxter v. Montana, physician-assisted suicide is not legal under the law. However, a doctor can use patient consent as an affirmative defense to the charge of deliberate homicide. Case law remains unclear on this matter.

Penalties

Montana still has the death penalty on the books, but it hasn’t carried out an execution since 2006. In 2015, Montana district court judge Jeffrey Sherlock ruled that the drug proposed for Montana’s lethal injection penalty did not meet the state’s “ultra fast-acting barbiturate” requirement. The state has suspended the death penalty since that date.

Penalties for homicide in Montana include:

• Deliberate homicide: Life imprisonment, or imprisonment between 10 and 100 years. Repeat sexual offenders can receive life imprisonment without possibility of parole (LWOP).
• Mitigated deliberate homicide: Between two and 40 years imprisonment and a fine of up to $50,000
• Negligent homicide: Up to 20 years imprisonment and a fine of up to $50,000
• Vehicular homicide under the influence: Up to 30 years imprisonment and a fine of not more than $50,000. Courts cannot defer sentencing for vehicular homicide.
• Aiding or soliciting suicide: Up to ten years imprisonment and a fine of up to $50,000

Exceptions to Mandatory Minimums

Judges can go outside the statutory penalties in cases where justice requires it, including:

• The defendant was a minor at the time of the crime
• The defendant was mentally incapacitated, though not enough to constitute a defense
• The defendant was under duress determined to be insufficient as a complete defense, but sufficient to justify a lesser sentence
• The defendant was an accomplice, but their participation was minor

Montana’s “Zone of Death”

A persistent myth claims that a “zone of death” exists in Yellowstone National Park. A law professor from Michigan State University claimed there was a 50-square-mile plot where prosecutors could not seat a jury. The theory went like this:

The federal government has jurisdiction over the national park. Any crimes within the park go before the court of the federal district of Wyoming. Under the Sixth Amendment and other jury requirements, a court case must have a jury from the county where the crime occurred. The "zone of death" has no permanent human population. According to the theory, without a jury, the defendant could never be tried. It would be "the perfect crime."

Since no one has ever committed a serious crime in the "zone of death," there is no case law testing the legal loophole. If someone committed a homicide within the "zone of death," it seems likely the courts would find a way to seat a jury despite the lack of population.

Get Legal Advice From a Montana Criminal Defense Attorney

Montana’s homicide laws appear simple, but the penalties are harsh. If you face any type of homicide charge, consider contacting a Montana criminal defense lawyer. A skilled defense attorney will examine your case, explain your options, and either fight for acquittal or broker the best plea bargain possible.