From the Courts - Hill County Justice Court: Former Havre police officer pleads guilty to misdemeanors

Former Havre Police officer Brandon Murnion pleaded guilty in Hill County Justice Court last week to two misdemeanors.

Murnion was accused of kicking in two doors July 10, on the 700 Block of Fourth Street and the 200 Block of Eighth Avenue and creating a disturbance by “creating a hazardous or physically offensive condition by any act that serves no legitimate purpose” on the 700 Block of Fourth Avenue.

Havre Police Chief Gabe Matosich said last Wednesday that Murrnion, who started as a probationary officer with Havre Aug. 3, 2020, is not employed by the city.

Matosich had not responded by this morning to questions about when Munrion’s employment ended and the nature of his leaving the police department.

The Havre police dispatch log for July 10 lists reports at about the time listed on the tickets — 3:22 a.m. — of a report of a burglary in progress and of a man banging on a door, with those incidents referred to another agency. The Hill County Sherrif’s Office dispatch log reports assisting another agency at 3:56 a.m. on the 200 Block of Fifth Street, saying it was referred to another agency. No arrests at those times or locations are listed.

The prosecution at Thursday’s hearing was represented by a Cascade County deputy attorney, appointed as a special Hill County deputy attorney in the case to avoid potential conflict of interest, and the case was seen in justice court, again to avoid any potential conflict.

Murnion appeared without counsel and waived his right to counsel, a court document says.

Hill County Justice of the Peace Audrey Barger accepted Murnion’s guilty pleas to two misdemeanor counts of criminal mischief and accepted an oral motion by the prosecution to dismiss a count of disorderly conduct.

She sentenced him to one day in jail with credit for time served on each count, to run at the same time. She deferred imposition of sentence for two years. If Murnion abides by all conditions of release, after those two years he can petition to have the counts stricken from his record.

She imposed $560 in fines and surcharges and ordered Murnion to pay $7,484.29 in restitution plus an administrative fee of $748.43.