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Montana Domestic Violence Law

Montana Domestic Violence Penalties, Mont. Code Ann. § 45-5-206

What you are facing under Mont. Code Ann. § 45-5-206, how the penalties scale, and the questions an attorney needs to answer — under Montana (MT) domestic-violence law.

Montana (MT) — Partner or Family Member Assault

Offense class: Misdemeanor (first/second); Felony (third+)

Incarceration

– 1 year (first); 1 year (second); 5 years (third+)

Maximum Fine

$1,000 (first); $1,000 (second); $50,000 (third+)

Offense Class

Misdemeanor (first/second); Felony (third+)

What this costs

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Mandatory minimum: 24 hours (first); 72 hours (second)

What this means

Plain language

A sentence the judge cannot go below, no matter the facts. A charge reduction is the usual way out.

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Federal firearms ban (

Lautenberg Amendment

Plain language

A federal law (18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9)) that bans gun possession after a misdemeanor domestic-violence conviction — separate from state penalties.

)

A misdemeanor domestic-violence conviction in Montana triggers a federal firearms-possession ban under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9). This applies on top of any state sentence, no matter how the Montana case ends.

Montana Domestic Violence Penalty Range

FactorDetail
StatuteMont. Code Ann. § 45-5-206
OffensePartner or Family Member Assault
ClassMisdemeanor (first/second); Felony (third+)
Incarceration – 1 year (first); 1 year (second); 5 years (third+)
Maximum fine$1,000 (first); $1,000 (second); $50,000 (third+)
Mandatory minimum24 hours (first); 72 hours (second)

Penalty Enhancements

Additional factors that can increase the sentence under Montana law.

  • Third or subsequent offense (felony)
  • Aggravated partner assault with weapon (§ 45-5-206(2) — felony, 2–20 years)
  • Strangulation (felony under § 45-5-215)

Montana note: Montana has specific partner/family member assault statutes. Third offense within any time period becomes a felony. Batterers' treatment program commonly ordered.

What you're afraid of

Montana domestic violence defendants tell us they're afraid of four things. Here's how we address each.

Every citation in your report links back to a real CourtListener URL or a real state statute page. Your attorney can verify everything in under five minutes. We sit alongside your attorney — we don't replace them.

  • What if I take the wrong plea — or the wrong sentence?

    Most defendants take the first plea offered. We pull the comparable cases in your district and your judge's prior rulings, so you can see what the floor actually is before deciding.

    See the Playbook

  • What if my attorney isn't actually listening — or preparing?

    Most defendants leave their attorney's office with more questions than they came in with. Not because attorneys are bad — the meeting is short and you didn't know what to ask. We hand you the questions, scored against your charge.

    Take the free Defense Score

  • I don't even know what I don't know.

    The hardest part of a criminal case is not knowing which questions matter. The Intelligence Brief pulls the most-cited opinions in your district + your charge, mapped to your judge's prior rulings, and surfaces the five questions that move the needle in front of this prosecutor.

    See what an Intelligence Brief covers

  • What if I bring my attorney a number they dismiss?

    If you bring your attorney a number they can't trace to a source, the conversation is over. Every number in our report is a hyperlink. Your attorney clicks, verifies, and the conversation continues.

    View a sample report

We're not here to replace your attorney. We're here to make sure you walk into their office knowing the right questions to ask.

What you're paying for is the time

Skip the 6-10 hours of reading. We already did it.

Defendants are already doing this work themselves — on r/legaladvice / r/Ask_Lawyers / Avvo Q&A, in Google searches, in the long thread of “what happens if I plead X” questions every public legal-help surface carries. The data is public. The reading is the work.

  • r/legaladvice + r/Ask_Lawyers (source): thousands of 'what happens if I plead X' threads, none of them indexed to your specific charge or your state's statute.

  • Avvo Q&A (source): per-charge plain-language threads, attorney answers gated behind per-minute meters.

  • Your state's official statute site: the actual statute text, the actual sentencing range, the actual enhancement triggers.

We hand you the synthesis — cited, hyperlinked, organized for your charge — for $127.

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Is your Montana domestic violence case defense on track?

The free Defense Score checks 10 critical defense behaviors specific to domestic violence cases. Takes 2 minutes. Instant results.

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DUI Defense Playbook

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26 questions that change how the next attorney meeting goes, a case stage roadmap, red flag checklist, and a case progress scorecard. Instant PDF download, relevant to Montana defendants.

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Other Montana defense topics

Facing a different charge in Montana? Penalty ranges, enhancements, and defense questions for related crimes:

DUI in MontanaDrug Possession in MontanaAssault in Montana

This page provides legal information — not legal advice — about Montana domestic violence law as of the date of publication. Laws change. Verify current statutes with a licensed attorney in Montana.