News you can use
News you can use
Sorted by date Results 1502 - 1526 of 2820
PABLO (AP) — Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes leaders have decided to distribute about half of a $150 million settlement with the U.S. government over mismanaged land royalties to enrolled tribal members, while keeping the other half for future programs. Tribal spokesman Robert McDonald said recent public meetings dealing with the issue have identified four program priorities — providing for elders, preserving language, cultural programs and economic development, The Missoulian reported (http://bit.ly/OzFfUs) Tue...
HELENA — Gov. Brian Schweitzer is refreshing his criticism of Republican legislators and past administrations just in time for election season. AP Photo/Matt Gouras Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer refreshes his criticism of Republican legislators just in time for election season during a speech Tuesda in Helenat. The term-limited Democrat is not on the ballot, but says voters need to support his colleagues if they expect good results. Since last year, Schweitzer has been arguing that incoming state revenue showed that R...
HELENA — Montana Supreme Court justices on Wednesday questioned whether people have a constitutional right to sell medical marijuana even though the drug is illegal under federal law. State attorneys asked the justices to rule that a district judge made a mistake last year when he blocked part of a new medical marijuana law that bans the commercial sales of pot in Montana. James Goetz, the attorney for the Montana Cannabis Industry Association and the other plaintiffs challenging the new law, said the court should not r...
ROUDUP — Firefighters battling an 18,700-acre wildfire south of Roundup got a break in the weather Thursday, while residents forced to leave their homes grew increasingly frustrated that they aren't allowed to return to see if they have anything left. Officials said the fire has burned dozens of residences since it was reported on Tuesday, though a precise tally was not available. Fire officials planned to survey the area Thursday. After the flames jumped its southern perimeter on Wednesday, firefighters were able to keep t...
BILLINGS (AP) — Oil companies have agreed to pay $320,000 to the northeastern Montana city of Poplar to relocate water wells and take other steps to deal with a 40 million gallon plume of pollution seeping into drinking supplies. Environmental Protection Agency scientist Sarah Roberts said Tuesday that Poplar's water so far remains safe to drink but faces imminent danger. Federal officials have been tracking the underground plume's spread from the East Poplar oil field for decades. It is moving toward Poplar and reached c...
BOSTON (AP) — Harvard University alumni attending their 50th class reunion this week are getting updates on classmates, but one person stands out among those sharing news about career moves, retirements and grandkids — Unabomber Ted Kaczynski. AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, File In this April 4, 1996 file photo, Ted Kaczynski, also known as the Unabomber, is escorted into the federal courthouse in Helena. Kaczynski graduated in 1962 and is locked up in the federal Supermax prison in Colorado for killing three people and inj...
AP Photo/Billings Gazette, Paul Ruhter Billings Police Chief Rich St. John gives a press conference in downtown Billings on Thursday, after an officer-related shooting at the Holiday Station and ended with a suspect being shot and killed by a city officer at the Dude Rancher Lodge. BILLINGS (AP) — Police in Billings shot and killed a man wanted on a felony warrant early Thursday after he shot at officers who tried to apprehend him at a gas station and later exchanged gunfire with police at a downtown motel, Chief Rich St. J...
HELENA (AP) — Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Montana said it fired its chief marketing officer last winter because the company missed a deadline to bid on a nearly $4 million annual contract to manage part of the state's health insurance plan. The claim was part of the company's response to Shannon Marsden's wrongful discharge lawsuit, which claims she was fired for reporting illegal actions that could have led to higher insurance premiums, the Independent Record reported (http://bit.ly/IennLh ) Tuesday. Blue Cross filed i...
CHOTEAU (AP) — U.S. Rep. Denny Rehberg held a listening session concerning proposed legislation that aims to preserve existing uses such as grazing on land along the Rocky Mountain Front while also adding other land to the Bob Marshall and Scapegoat wilderness areas. The Great Falls Tribune reports that Rehberg, a Republican, told participants at the session on Saturday that he suspects support for the Rocky Mountain Front Heritage Act may not be as widespread as backer's claim. "This is your chance to tell me what you t...
BILLLINGS — Booming oil production across a wide expanse of the Northern Plains is forcing law enforcement from the U.S. and Canada to gird for a spike in crimes ranging from drug trafficking and gun offenses to prostitution. Officials say up to 30,000 workers could descend on the Bakken oil fields of Montana, North Dakota and Saskatchewan in the next few years. The recent kidnapping and brutal murder of Sidney teacher Sherry Arnold has drawn more attention to the changes brought on by the rapid pace of drilling. In the w...
HELENA — Twenty-two states and the District of Columbia are backing Montana in its fight to prevent the U.S. Supreme Court's 2010 Citizens United decision from being used to strike down state laws restricting corporate campaign spending. The states led by New York are asking the high court to preserve Montana's state-level regulations on corporate political expenditures, according to a copy of a brief written by New York's attorney general's office and obtained by The Associated Press. The brief will be publicly released M...
HELENA (AP) — A judge has struck down more Montana campaign finance laws in an ongoing challenge that the regulations restrict free speech. U.S. District Judge Charles Lovell ruled Wednesday that state laws requiring attack ads to disclose the targeted candidates' voting record and ban knowingly false statements in such ads are unconstitutionally vague. Lovell also ruled that Montana cannot ban corporations from making contributions to political committees that make independent expenditures. American Tradition Partnership a...
MISSOULA (AP) — Dozens of people turned out in Missoula as Montana wildlife officials began a statewide tour to gauge public opinion on the reintroduction of wild bison to public lands. Ranchers and landowners sported anti-bison buttons while wildlife advocates and hunters spoke in favor of adding another wild animal to the landscape, The Missoulian reported. State bison specialist Arnie Dood said no bison plan currently exists. Monday's meeting was the first in a series to gather informal comments about what the plan s...
HELENA — A Montana prosecutor has formally charged former NFL quarterback Ryan Leaf with four felonies in connection with allegations that he broke into homes to steal prescription painkillers. Cascade County Attorney John Parker charged Leaf Thursday with two counts of burglary and two counts of criminal possession of a dangerous drug. Leaf is accused of entering an acquaintance's home to steal oxycodone on March 29. He was arrested the next day and released after posting bail. Authorities say he broke into another home a...
HELENA (AP) — The Montana Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a ballot initiative that would have required candidates for the high court to be chosen from geographical districts instead of through statewide elections. The Supreme Court, in a 6-to-1 ruling, upheld a March court decision that said the proposed initiative is unconstitutional because it would have required candidates to live within those districts. The Montana Constitution requires only that a candidate live in the state for two years. The additional residency r...
INGOMAR (AP) — The top U.S. Postal Service official on Thursday took his case for rural post office closures straight to the people it will hurt most, telling residents in Montana's capital and in one of its smallest towns that up to 3,600 small post offices around the country need to be shuttered as part of cost-cutting moves. Rural residents who traveled to Helena to meet Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe answered right back, saying cuts should be made elsewhere because their post offices provide a much-needed lifeline. A...
BOZEMAN (AP) — The cost of health insurance for students signed up in the statewide Montana University System is going up in September. Students under age 40 will see rates increase by 9 to 13 percent, while students 40 and over will see rates increase by as much as 113 percent. Officials tell the Bozeman Daily Chronicle (http://bit.ly/NmrhIb) that a combination of older students more likely to have health problems joining and younger students leaving the system combined to raise expenses. Cindy Welsh is the director of b...
HELENA — Attorney General Steve Bullock says his running mate for governor will be the state's national guard commander. Bullock, a Democrat, says that Brigadier General John Walsh has agreed to run as lieutenant governor on his ticket. Walsh, originally from Butte, retired earlier this week to make the entry into politics. Bullock is the clear front runner for the Democratic nomination. Several Republicans engaged in a primary battle, topped in fundraising by former Congressman Rick Hill, are all eying a tough general e...
HELENA — The state Supreme Court says obesity qualifies as an impairment in some cases under the Montana Human Rights Act, potentially allowing obese people to seek greater protection against discrimination. The divided court handed down the ruling Friday in a case between Eric Feit and Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway, finding that if a person's weight is outside the normal range and affects one or more body systems, it may constitute a physical or mental impairment — even if it's not a symptom of some underlying disease...
HELENA (AP) — The number of registered medical marijuana users in Montana is leveling out after last year's restrictive law passed by the Legislature caused a steep drop in cardholders and providers. The Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services reports there were 8,681 registered users in the state as of June 30, a number that is slightly down from 8,734 users the month before. That represents a much smaller decline than the previous months leading back to June 2011, when there were more than 30,000 medical m...
MISSOULA (AP) — Former University of Montana running back Beau Donaldson plans to plead guilty to sexual intercourse without consent after reaching a plea agreement with prosecutors, his attorney said Tuesday. Defense attorney Milt Datsopolous' announcement followed a court hearing in which he and prosecutors confirmed the plea deal. Prosecutors said Donaldson raped a female acquaintance while she slept on his couch after drinking alcohol at a party in September 2010. Court records say he acknowledged the assault during a m...
BUTTE (AP) — Butte-Silver Bow Sheriff John Walsh says Butte residents should find alternatives to firearms when it comes to breaking up dog fights. Walsh tells the Montana Standard that resorting to firearms could result in additional problems. Walsh's comments follow a dog fight last week where a man shot and killed a neighbor's pit bull after the pit bull left its yard and attacked the man's dog. The shooting was determined justifiable and police say the shooting didn't lead to a conflict between the neighbors. But Walsh s...
HELENA — Lawyers for the only Canadian on death row in the United States told the Montana Parole Board on Wednesday that he deserves clemency because he is a changed man who deserves to live. Ronald A. Smith of Red Deer, Alberta, is asking board members for a recommendation that the governor commute his death sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole. His lawyers want them to look beyond the horrific murders of two cousins in 1983. The board said it expects to issue its findings in three weeks, although the...
HELENA — The commissioner of political practices says that Republican candidate for governor Ken Miller, a former state senator from Laurel, has been funding his campaign with illegal donations that included anonymous, corporate and excess contributions. Miller derided the findings as a politically-motivated attack just four days before the primary. The case stems from a complaint that originated from within the campaign itself in April. Miller's former fundraiser accused the campaign of not fully reporting campaign d...
HELENA (AP) — Old emails indicate former congressman Rick Hill's agreements to lease office space to the state could have benefited from his wife's position in former Gov. Judy Martz' office. An Associated Press analysis of emails originally received in a 2002 records request on another matter help shed light on a competitor's allegation that the front-runner in the Republican primary for governor got a "sweetheart deal." Several email conversations show Betti Hill used a state email account to discuss leases with other s...
