Kris Hansen, ex-chief deputy attorney general, dies at 52

Press release

HELENA (AP) - Kris Hansen, who recently departed the No. 2 post at Montana Attorney General's Office, has died at age 52, according to state officials.

A news release from the Montana Department of Justice said Hansen died early Thursday, the Independent Record reported. No information about her cause of death was released.

Hansen was named chief deputy of the Montana Department of Justice in December 2020. Before that, she worked for the Montana state Auditor's office and represented Havre as a Republican state lawmaker.

She served as a deputy Hill County attorney and while in that position she was elected, then re-elected, to the state House of Representatives then was elected to the state Senate.

She resigned her Senate seat in 2016 to take a position in the Auditor's office and was replaced by Sen. Russ Tempel, R-Chester.

Attorney General Austin Knudsen appointed her chief deputy attorney in December 2020.

In late May of this year, Hansen confirmed she was leaving the office, but declined to say why.

The Attorney General's Office said at the time she was leaving to "attend to personal and family matters."

"Kris was a dear friend, a conservative leader, and an amazing woman who dedicated her life to others," Knudsen said in a statement Friday.

Hansen was a central figure during the state Republicans' conflict with the judicial branch last year. Hansen, representing Republican lawmakers who had subpoenaed judicial records, wrote a public letter accusing the Supreme Court of interfering with a legislative investigation by quashing a subpoena for judicial records.

The court ultimately ruled state lawmakers had overstepped their authority with the subpoenas.

Hansen was a Montana National Guard veteran and served during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

She also served a tour of duty with the Central Intelligence Agency in Mogadishu, Somalia in the early 1990s.

Gov. Greg Gianforte said in a statement that Hansen's "indomitable spirit left an impact on all who knew her."

A spokesperson for Knudsen declined Friday to offer information on the cause or location of death, as well as funeral information.

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Havre Daily News staff contributed to this report