News you can use
News you can use
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WEST GLACIER, Mont. (AP) — Supporters of Glacier National Park and fans of its iconic red tour buses are upset that the park's new concessions contract calls for replacing half of the buses with alternative fuel vehicles by 2029. "I believe it would be an absolute tragedy to eliminate any of the red buses from the fleet," said Bruce Austin, who served on the Red Bus Team that worked to refurbish the fleet from 1999 to 2002. "They should all be kept and refurbished. The public's interest in these vehicles is huge." The t...
HELENA (AP) — Columbia Falls police officers were justified in using a stun gun on a 77-year-old Alzheimer's patient who had wandered away from the Montana Veterans' Home and died a few weeks after the confrontation, an attorney for the city said in a court filing Tuesday. The filing by attorney William L. Crowley is in response to a wrongful death lawsuit by the family of Stanley Downen, who died three weeks after he fell and struck his head on the pavement in the encounter with two police officers on June 1, 2012. D...
BILLINGS (AP) — Federal lawmakers are seeking to lift restrictions on hydropower development so more local irrigation districts could use water flowing through government-sponsored agricultural canals and pipelines to generate electricity. Proponents say hundreds of irrigation systems, the bulk of them in the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains, would be able to pursue small power projects under proposals from Western lawmakers. The measures seek to change laws that block or restrict hydropower projects on systems built by t...
BILLINGS (AP) — The Montana Federation of Women's Prison Employees has authorized a strike. The union represents about 50 Montana Women's Prison workers who have been without a contract since July 1, 2011. Union members include correctional officers and correctional counselor employees. The Billings Gazette reports (http://bit.ly/Wtf0lF) in a story published Friday that the proposal by members of the union passed in early December authorizing the strike. The federation and the state began mediation last summer but haven't b...
HELENA (AP) — A lawmaker's proposal protecting "alternative viewpoints" during the teaching of evolution and science in schools came under fire Friday from opponents who argued it would pave the way for teaching of creationism. Rep. Clayton Fiscus, R-Billings, said evolution isn't settled science and called it a "monumental leap" to believe it is true. His bill would allow teachers — if they want — to address perceived weaknesses in evolution studies in the classroom. "This is just a bill to instruct what we have prese...
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — The Navajo Code Talkers are legendary. Then there was Cpl. Ira Hamilton Hayes, the Pima Indian who became a symbol of courage and patriotism when he and his fellow Marines raised the flag over Iwo Jima in 1945. Before World War II and in the decades since, tens of thousands of American Indians have enlisted in the Armed Forces to serve their country at a rate much greater than any other ethnicity. Yet, among all the monuments and statutes along the National Mall in Washington, D.C., not one stands i...
HELENA (AP) — Gov. Steve Bullock's Inaugural Ball Committee raised a total of $315,000 for two events in February. The committee raised $275,275 from donations and $40,124 in ticket sales to the Feb. 9 inaugural ball. Lee Newspapers of Montana reports nearly 3,000 people attended. Admission was free for the separate Children's Ball, but parents were asked to donate a nonperishable food item at the door. The effort collected more than 900 pounds of food for the Montana Food Network. According to a recently released report, P...
MISSOULA (AP) — A 72-year-old woman from northwestern Montana has died in a head-on collision on U.S. Highway 93. The Montana Highway Patrol tells the Missoulian (http://bit.ly/Z6Xvwq) that the woman from Arlee died Friday afternoon in the crash near the Schall Flats area. Trooper Terrance Rosenbaum says the woman was driving a Cadillac southbound when she drifted left into the turn lane before veering right and into oncoming traffic where she collided with a commercial truck. Rosenbaum says she might have had a medical c...
BOZEMAN (AP) — An associate professor at Montana State University died of injuries suffered in a landslide in Nepal, where she was leading a group of students taking an honors program course. Betsy Palmer, 54, was flown to a hospital in Katmandu and died of her injuries on Monday. Palmer and 16 students were on an extended trek to a remote village in the Arun River Valley in the Himalayas when the landslide hit, university spokesman Tracy Ellig said. None of the students was injured. Palmer arrived at MSU in 2001 and was a...
GREAT FALLS (AP) — Fort Benton Police say they are investigating a stabbing death. Police say a 21-year-old man died after being stabbed just before 2 a.m. Saturday. Police say a suspect is in custody, and that the suspect and victim knew each other. Names have not been released....
HELENA — As new gun laws are considered in the wake of recent mass shootings, the debate over such proposals in Montana is ramping up. One state senator has claimed that gangs of thieves are stalking gun owners, and a state representative is moving to resist any attempt to ban assault rifles. AP Photo/Matt Gouras David Phillip, left, and Kelly Phillip of Missoula pose at a pro-gun rally at the state Capitol on Saturday, Jin Helena. Rallies were held across the country this weekend to raise concerns about possible new gun l...
MISSOULA (AP) — A former Missoula man who once organized traveling clinics for people seeking medical marijuana cards has been found guilty of intimidation for a 2010 phone call in which he threatened to bomb a cellphone retailer. The Missoulian reports (http://bit.ly/103VYCT) jurors took 40 minutes Thursday to return the verdict against Jason Christ. Christ represented himself. He told jurors he didn't really mean it when he told a store employee that he needed to talk to someone who could get something done or: "I'm g...
BILLINGS (AP) — A 54-year-old Billings man has been convicted of his 13th instance of driving under the influence after jurors rejected his argument that he drove away from his house last summer because he felt threatened by a neighbor. The Billings Gazette reports (http://bit.ly/ZDO6Iq) jurors convicted John Harvey Hoots on Thursday. His attorney argued state law allows a person to commit a crime to avoid serious injury or death. Hoots testified he feared his neighbor. The neighbor testified he called 911 on July 31 to r...
BOZEMAN (AP) — Former Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer says his position on gun control is one reason he couldn't step onto the national political stage. Political pundits have mentioned Schweitzer as a possible candidate for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination. The Bozeman Daily Chronicle reports (http://bit.ly/Z8TA2e ) a bearded Schweitzer told some Montana State University students on Thursday that he couldn't give an acceptable answer to voters in states like Iowa and Florida if they asked him about gun control. H...
HELENA (AP) — A series of emails shows plans by conservative Republicans to take over leadership of the state Senate from a more moderate faction. The documents obtained by the Great Falls Tribune also outline a long-term strategy that includes "changing the face of the Montana Supreme Court" and remapping legislative districts to favor Republicans, according to an email written by Sen. Jeff Essmann of Billings last September. "If we can implement the long term strategy we will be in a position to actually elect a majority o...
BOZEMAN (AP) — Montana State University officials have approved a new policy expanding the ability of employees to donate unused sick leave to include women who miss work due to pregnancy. The Bozeman Daily Chronicle reports (http://bit.ly/UNM2Oo) that the 40 or so Montana State leaders who make up the University Council on Wednesday unanimously approved the new policy. The previous policy said sick leave could be donated to colleagues with longer illnesses or a colleague caring for immediate family members, but not for p...
HELENA(AP) — Republican-led legislative budget panels are axing the standard inflationary increases normally used as a starting point for spending bills. The joint appropriations committees were instead voting Friday to start all agency budgets at 2012 levels. Critics argue the move doesn't ensure there will be enough money to pay for current programs authorized by law. House Speaker Mark Blasdel of Somers says it will be better for lawmakers to determine how much is needed rather than relying on automatic predictions. B...
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — The winter wheat crop is expected to be far smaller this season compared to last, particularly for hard red varieties used in bread, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported Friday. In the first government projection on the harvest's anticipated size, the National Agricultural Statistics Service estimated winter wheat production will be down 10 percent to 1.49 billion bushels, due to fewer acres — 32.7 million acres, some 6 percent fewer acres than a year ago — and a 1.8-bushel decrease in average yiel...
LIVINGSTON (AP) — A former state legislator accused of skirting a roadblock and resisting arrest asked for proof of a court's legitimacy, but kept disruptions to a minimum compared to a previous hearing. The Livingston Enterprise reports Joel Boniek appeared in Park County Justice Court Monday. Boniek pleaded not guilty to the misdemeanor charges from the July encounter with officers keeping people out of a wildfire area. Boniek told Justice of the Peace Linda Budeski he wanted proof her court is constitutional. She r...
HELENA (AP) — Gov. Steve Bullock's successful election campaign is announcing plans for the new governor's inaugural ball. Bullock took office Monday after beating Republican Rick Hill in November's election. Bullock takes office as lawmakers arrive in town to analyze his budget proposal. A release says that a celebration ball will be held Saturday, Feb. 9, at the Lewis and Clark County Fairgrounds. Tickets are being sold online at the fairgrounds web site starting next week for $25 each. The ball is scheduled to run from 7...
MILES CITY, Mont. (AP) — A physician is seeking $22 million in damages after Holy Rosary Healthcare in Miles City revoked his medical staff privileges in December 2009. The Miles City Star reports (http://bit.ly/NHrDV3 ) Dr. J. Randall Rauh is suing for breach of contract, unlawful restraint of trade and interference with the physician/patient relationship. The hospital argues Rauh didn't exhaust his remedies under medical staff bylaws before suing. A jury trial is set for June 10. Rauh is an obstetrician and gynecologist w...
BILLINGS (AP) — A Billings woman whose husband was shot while apparently trying to flee the scene of a weekend standoff in a police car has been charged with burglary. Heather Lynn Brawley, 25, made an initial appearance Tuesday in Justice Court, where her bail was set at $10,000. Justice of the Peace Larry Herman ordered her to appear for arraignment in District Court on Jan. 17. Brawley and her husband were taken into custody Sunday on suspicion of breaking into a house and were placed in separate patrol cars. Daniel Brawle...
HELENA (AP) — A power struggle that has splintered the Blackfeet Indians' governing council and divided the tribe is moving beyond the reservation's boundaries. The intra-tribal political feud has been escalating for nearly a year, leading to the dismissal or suspension of several members of the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council and leaving just five of its nine members to make decisions for the governing body. The division has led to accusations of corruption by supporters of both factions and street protests outside t...
HELENA (AP) — Gov. Steve Bullock's proposed $500 million spending increase in his state budget plan could be a key issue for Republican legislative leaders. AP Photo Gov,. Steve Bullock at his innaugural ceremonies Monday. The Legislature's budget committees heard a presentation Wednesday on the budget. Bullock's plan modifies the original proposal from former Gov. Brian Schweitzer. Republican Sen. Dave Lewis of Helena says he thinks the requested spending increases over the two-year budget period are the largest in recent d...
BILLINGS (AP) — A standoff ended with the death of a handcuffed burglary suspect who hit a Montana police officer with his own patrol car before the officer opened fire, authorities said. AP Photo/The Billings Gazette, James Woodcock SWAT team members stand guard as a man is given CPR after a standoff with police and the SWAT team in Billings. The standoff ended with the death of a handcuffed burglary suspect who hit a Montana police officer with his own patrol car before the officer opened fire. The 29-year-old man was in th...
