What is the Sentence for a First Time Offender Charged with Multiple Crimes in Montana?

Full question:

If its your first time in trouble with montana law. And you have a felony assault with a weapon, plus disorderly conduct, resisting arrest,and criminal mischief, you paid for the window being broken. What will you get

• Category: Criminal
• Subcategory: Sentences
• Date: 04/07/2025
• State: Montana

Answer:

The answer will depend on all the facts and circumstances involved. I suggest you consult a local criminal defense attorney, who may be able to negotiate for a plea bargain or lesser penalties.

Please see the following MT statutes to determine applicability:

45-5-201. Assault.

(1) A person commits the offense of assault if the person:

(a) purposely or knowingly causes bodily injury to another;

(b) negligently causes bodily injury to another with a weapon;

(c) purposely or knowingly makes physical contact of an insulting or
provoking nature with any individual; or

(d) purposely or knowingly causes reasonable apprehension of bodily
injury in another.

(2) A person convicted of assault shall be fined not to exceed $500 or be
imprisoned in the county jail for any term not to exceed 6 months, or both.

45-5-202. Aggravated assault.

(1) A person commits the offense of aggravated assault if the person
purposely or knowingly causes serious bodily injury to another or purposely
or knowingly, with the use of physical force or contact, causes reasonable
apprehension of serious bodily injury or death in another.

(2) A person convicted of aggravated assault shall be imprisoned in the
state prison for a term not to exceed 20 years and may be fined not more
than $50,000, except as provided in 46-18-219 and 46-18-222.

45-6-101. Criminal mischief.

(1) A person commits the offense of criminal mischief if the person
knowingly or purposely:

(a) injures, damages, or destroys any property of another or public
property without consent;

(b) without consent tampers with property of another or public property
so as to endanger or interfere with persons or property or its use;

(c) damages or destroys property with the purpose to defraud an insurer;
or

(d) fails to close a gate previously unopened that the person has opened,
leading in or out of any enclosed premises. This does not apply to gates
located in cities or towns.

(2) A person convicted of criminal mischief must be ordered to make
restitution in an amount and manner to be set by the court. The court shall
determine the manner and amount of restitution after full consideration of
the convicted person's ability to pay the restitution. Upon good cause
shown by the convicted person, the court may modify any previous order
specifying the amount and manner of restitution. Full payment of the amount
of restitution ordered must be made prior to the release of state
jurisdiction over the person convicted.

(3) A person convicted of the offense of criminal mischief shall be fined
not to exceed $1,000 or be imprisoned in the county jail for any term not
to exceed 6 months, or both. If the offender commits the offense of
criminal mischief and causes pecuniary loss in excess of $1,000, injures or
kills a commonly domesticated hoofed animal, or causes a substantial
interruption or impairment of public communication, transportation, supply
of water, gas, or power, or other public services, the offender shall be
fined an amount not to exceed $50,000 or be imprisoned in the state prison
for a term not to exceed 10 years, or both.

(4) Amounts involved in criminal mischiefs committed pursuant to a common
scheme or the same transaction, whether against the public or the same
person or several persons, may be aggregated in determining pecuniary loss.

45-8-101. Disorderly conduct.

(1) A person commits the offense of disorderly conduct if he knowingly
disturbs the peace by:

(a) quarreling, challenging to fight, or fighting;

(b) making loud or unusual noises;

(c) using threatening, profane, or abusive language;

(d) discharging firearms, except at a shooting range during established
hours of operation;

(e) rendering vehicular or pedestrian traffic impassable;

(f) rendering the free ingress or egress to public or private places
impassable;

(g) disturbing or disrupting any lawful assembly or public meeting;

(h) transmitting a false report or warning of a fire or other catastrophe
in such a place that its occurrence would endanger human life;

(i) creating a hazardous or physically offensive condition by any act
that serves no legitimate purpose; or

(j) transmitting a false report or warning of an impending explosion in
such a place that its occurrence would endanger human life.

(2) Except as provided in subsection (3), a person convicted of the
offense of disorderly conduct shall be fined not to exceed $100 or be
imprisoned in the county jail for a term not to exceed 10 days, or both.

(3) A person convicted of a violation of subsection (1)(j) shall be fined
not to exceed $1,000 or be imprisoned in the county jail for a term not to
exceed 1 year, or both.

45-7-301. Resisting arrest.

(1) A person commits the offense of resisting arrest if he knowingly
prevents or attempts to prevent a peace officer from effecting an arrest
by:

(a) using or threatening to use physical force or violence against the
peace officer or another; or

(b) using any other means which creates a risk of causing physical injury
to the peace officer or another.

(2) It is no defense to a prosecution under this section that the arrest
was unlawful, provided the peace officer was acting under color of his
official authority.

(3) A person convicted of the offense of resisting arrest shall be fined
not to exceed $500 or be imprisoned in the county jail for any term not to
exceed 6 months, or both.

History: En. 94-7-301 by Sec. 1, Ch. 513, L. 1973; R.C.M. 1947, 94-7-301.

Criminal Law Commission Comments:

Source: Proposed Mich. C.C. 1967, § 4625.

Compiler's Comments:

Annotator's Note: Until the passage of this section, Montana had no
provision dealing specifically with resistance to an arrest. The proposed
Michigan Criminal Code of 1967 was never adopted by the Michigan
legislature. There is, therefore, no Michigan case law interpreting this
statute. Subsection (1) is narrower than the repealed statute which
concerned resistance to the discharge by public officers of their duties (§
94-35-169, R.C.M. 1947). The old law specifically applied not only to
interference with arrest made by a peace officer, but to the discharge by
any public officer of any duty of his office. Also, this subsection unlike
the repealed statute, requires the use of threat of force or the risk of
injury in connection with the interference with the peace officer. "Peace
officer" is defined at MCA, 45-2-101.

Subsection (2) was not a part of the repealed law. This subsection is in
opposition to the common-law theory that an officer undertaking an unlawful
arrest was deemed to be not acting in the line of duty. Under this theory
the intended arrestee had the privilege to use reasonable force to prevent
the unlawful deprivation of his liberty. Subsection (2) takes the often
complicated decision as to the lawfulness of the arrest away from the
arrestee, thereby allowing such decision to be decided ultimately in court
rather than by force. This is also the position taken by the Model Penal
Code, § 3.04(2)(a)(l), and establishes the policy basis for both this
section and 45-3-108 which handles another aspect of the same problem in
removing the defense of justifiable use of force in resisting an arrest
even if the arrest is unlawful. These two sections work together to deal
with the problems posed by citizen efforts to counter what they believe to
be unlawful arrest by officers of the law and are intended to discourage
self-help and require resort to the courts for relief.

Subsection (3) reduces the maximum penalty allowed under the prior law.

46-18-201. Sentences that may be imposed.

(1)(a) Whenever a person has been found guilty of an offense upon a
verdict of guilty or a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, a sentencing
judge may defer imposition of sentence, except as otherwise specifically
provided by statute, for a period:

(i) not exceeding 1 year for a misdemeanor or for a period not exceeding
3 years for a felony; or

(ii) not exceeding 2 years for a misdemeanor or for a period not
exceeding 6 years for a felony if a financial obligation is imposed as a
condition of sentence for either the misdemeanor or the felony, regardless
of whether any other conditions are imposed.

(b) Except as provided in 46-18-222, imposition of sentence in a felony
case may not be deferred in the case of an offender who has been convicted
of a felony on a prior occasion, whether or not the sentence was imposed,
imposition of the sentence was deferred, or execution of the sentence was
suspended.

(2) Whenever a person has been found guilty of an offense upon a verdict
of guilty or a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, a sentencing judge may
suspend execution of sentence, except as otherwise specifically provided by
statute, for a period up to the maximum sentence allowed or for a period of
6 months, whichever is greater, for each particular offense.

(3) Whenever a person has been found guilty of an offense upon a verdict
of guilty or a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, a sentencing judge may
impose a sentence that may include:

(a) a fine as provided by law for the offense;

(b) payment of costs, as provided in 46-18-232, or payment of costs of
assigned counsel as provided in 46-8-113;

(c) a term of incarceration, as provided in Title 45 for the offense, at
a county detention center or at a state prison to be designated by the
department of corrections;

(d) commitment of:

(i) an offender not referred to in subsection (3)(d)(ii) to the
department of corrections, with a recommendation for placement in an
appropriate correctional facility or program; however, all but the first 5
years of the commitment to the department of corrections must be suspended,
except as provided in 45-5-503(4), 45-5-507(5), 45-5-601(3), 45-5-602(3),
45-5-603(2)(c), and 45-5-625(4); or

(ii) a youth transferred to district court under 41-5-206 and found
guilty in the district court of an offense enumerated in 41-5-206 to the
department of corrections for a period determined by the court for
placement in an appropriate correctional facility or program;

(e) with the approval of the facility or program, placement of the
offender in a community corrections facility or program as provided in
53-30-321;

(f) with the approval of the prerelease center or prerelease program and
confirmation by the department of corrections that space is available,
placement of the offender in a prerelease center or prerelease program for
a period not to exceed 1 year;

(g) chemical treatment of sexual offenders, as provided in 45-5-512, if
applicable, that is paid for by and for a period of time determined by the
department of corrections, but not exceeding the period of state
supervision of the person; or

(h) any combination of subsections (2) through (3)(g).

(4) When deferring imposition of sentence or suspending all or a portion
of execution of sentence, the sentencing judge may impose upon the offender
any reasonable restrictions or conditions during the period of the deferred
imposition or suspension of sentence. Reasonable restrictions or conditions
imposed under subsection (1)(a) or (2) of this section may include but are
not limited to:

(a) limited release during employment hours as provided in 46-18-701;

(b) incarceration in a detention center not exceeding 180 days;

(c) conditions for probation;

(d) payment of the costs of confinement;

(e) payment of a fine as provided in 46-18-231;

(f) payment of costs as provided in 46-18-232 and 46-18-233;

(g) payment of costs of assigned counsel as provided in 46-8-113;

(h) with the approval of the facility or program, an order that the
offender be placed in a community corrections facility or program as
provided in 53-30-321;

(i) with the approval of the prerelease center or prerelease program and
confirmation by the department of corrections that space is available, an
order that the offender be placed in a prerelease center or prerelease
program for a period not to exceed 1 year;

(j) community service;

(k) home arrest as provided in Title 46, chapter 18, part 10;

(l) payment of expenses for use of a judge pro tempore or special master
as provided in 3-5-116;

(m) with the approval of the department of corrections and with a signed
statement from an offender that the offender's participation in the boot
camp incarceration program is voluntary, an order that the offender
complete the boot camp incarceration program established pursuant to
53-30-403;

(n) participation in a day reporting program provided for in 53-1-203;

(o) any other reasonable restrictions or conditions considered necessary
for rehabilitation or for the protection of the victim or society; or

(p) any combination of the restrictions or conditions listed in
subsections (4)(a) through (4)(p).

(5) In addition to any other penalties imposed, if a person has been
found guilty of an offense upon a verdict of guilty or a plea of guilty or
nolo contendere and the sentencing judge finds that a victim, as defined in
46-18-243, has sustained a pecuniary loss, the sentencing judge shall, as
part of the sentence, require payment of full restitution to the victim, as
provided in 46-18-241 through 46-18-249, whether or not any part of the
sentence is deferred or suspended.

(6) In addition to any of the penalties, restrictions, or conditions
imposed pursuant to subsections (1) through (5), the sentencing judge may
include the suspension of the license or driving privilege of the person to
be imposed upon the failure to comply with any penalty, restriction, or
condition of the sentence. A suspension of the license or driving privilege
of the person must be accomplished as provided in 61-5-214 through
61-5-217.

(7) In imposing a sentence on an offender convicted of a sexual or
violent offense, as defined in 46-23-502, the sentencing judge may not
waive the registration requirement provided in Title 46, chapter 23,
part 5.

(8) If a felony sentence includes probation, the department of
corrections shall supervise the offender unless the court specifies
otherwise.

46-18-202. Additional restrictions on sentence.

(1) The sentencing judge may also impose any of the following
restrictions or conditions on the sentence provided for in 46-18-201 that
the judge considers necessary to obtain the objectives of rehabilitation
and the protection of the victim and society:

(a) prohibition of the offender's holding public office;

(b) prohibition of the offender's owning or carrying a dangerous weapon;

(c) restrictions on the offender's freedom of association;

(d) restrictions on the offender's freedom of movement;

(e) a requirement that the defendant provide a biological sample for DNA
testing for purposes of Title 44, chapter 6, part 1, if an agreement to do
so is part of the plea bargain;

(f) any other limitation reasonably related to the objectives of
rehabilitation and the protection of the victim and society.

(2) Whenever the sentencing judge imposes a sentence of imprisonment in a
state prison for a term exceeding 1 year, the sentencing judge may also
impose the restriction that the offender is ineligible for parole and
participation in the supervised release program while serving that term. If
the restriction is to be imposed, the sentencing judge shall state the
reasons for it in writing. If the sentencing judge finds that the
restriction is necessary for the protection of society, the judge shall
impose the restriction as part of the sentence and the judgment must
contain a statement of the reasons for the restriction.

46-18-205. Mandatory minimum sentences — restrictions on deferral or
suspension.

(1) If the victim was less than 16 years of age, the imposition or
execution of the first 30 days of a sentence of imprisonment imposed under
the following sections may not be deferred or suspended and the provisions
of 46-18-222 do not apply to the first 30 days of the imprisonment:

(a) 45-5-503, sexual intercourse without consent;

(b) 45-5-504, indecent exposure;

(c) 45-5-505, deviate sexual conduct; or

(d) 45-5-507, incest.

(2) Except as provided in 45-9-202 and 46-18-222, the imposition or
execution of the first 2 years of a sentence of imprisonment imposed under
the following sections may not be deferred or suspended:

(a) 45-5-103(4), mitigated deliberate homicide;

(b) 45-5-202, aggravated assault;

(c) 45-5-302(2), kidnapping;

(d) 45-5-303(2), aggravated kidnapping;

(e) 45-5-401(2), robbery;

(f) 45-5-502(3), sexual assault;

(g) 45-5-503(2) and (3), sexual intercourse without consent;

(h) 45-5-603, aggravated promotion of prostitution;

(i) 45-9-101(2), (3), and (5)(d), criminal distribution of dangerous
drugs;

(j) 45-9-102(4), criminal possession of dangerous drugs; and

(k) 45-9-103(2), criminal possession with intent to distribute dangerous
drugs.

(3) Except as provided in 46-18-222, the imposition or execution of the
first 10 years of a sentence of imprisonment imposed under 45-5-102,
deliberate homicide, may not be deferred or suspended.

(4) The provisions of this section do not apply to sentences imposed
pursuant to 45-5-503(4), 45-5-507(5), 45-5-601(3), 45-5-602(3),
45-5-603(2)(c), or 45-5-625(4).