Montana

Decade-long legal challenge to abortion consent law reaches Montana Supreme Court

Published

2 years ago

March 7, 2024

Decade-long legal challenge to abortion consent law reaches Montana Supreme Court

HELENA — On Wednesday, the Montana Supreme Court heard arguments in a decade-long case, challenging a law that would require parental consent before a minor could get an abortion.

In 2013, the Montana Legislature passed House Bill 391, which prohibited anyone under 18 from getting an abortion without notarized written consent from their parent or legal guardian. Exceptions would be allowed in a medical emergency or if a minor successfully petitioned a court to waive the requirement.

The bill became law without the signature of then-Gov. Steve Bullock, but it never went into effect, as Planned Parenthood of Montana sued over it and the office of then-Attorney General Tim Fox accepted a preliminary injunction. Over the following years, the case passed through several district court judges, eventually ending up with District Judge Chris Abbott of Helena. Last year, he ruled the law was invalid because it infringed on the right to privacy in the Montana Constitution.

Attorney General Austin Knudsen’s office appealed Abbott’s decision, saying he used the wrong standard when judging the law. Abbott applied “strict scrutiny,” meaning the state had to show a compelling interest to justify the law and that it was narrowly tailored to achieve its goal.

Deputy solicitor general Brent Mead told justices Wednesday that the law should be analyzed differently because the Montana Constitution grants the state more authority to make laws that affect the rights of people under the age of 18. He said that means the Armstrong decision – the 1999 Montana Supreme Court ruling that said abortion was covered under the state constitution’s right of privacy – doesn’t apply in full here.

“Under Article 2, Section 15, a minor’s rights can be infringed if the law is designed to protect them,” said Mead. “And so in this case, the full Article 2, Section 10 – the right to privacy – doesn’t attach because the law is designed to protect them in that protected interest.”

Mead said the court should instead balance the individual rights of the minor with the rights of their parents and the state’s legitimate interest in protecting minors.

Justices questioned Mead on why strict scrutiny should not apply in this case, and whether the consent requirement was the least restrictive method possible, given an earlier law that only required a parent be notified – which also faced a lawsuit. Mead said the law was intended to resolve a loophole in the parental notification law and the two shouldn’t be directly contrasted.

Attorneys representing Planned Parenthood said Wednesday that Abbott did use the proper standard when deciding the case. They said, under strict scrutiny, the state would have to point to a legitimate health or safety risk to justify the law as a protection for minors, and they hadn’t done so.

Attorney Tanis Holm said the parental consent requirement would apply only to abortion, not to a variety of other procedures.

“Whatever interest the state has in promoting parental authority must be exercised neutrally, not as to favor childbirth over abortion, and certainly not to step in the shoes of parents to regulate the family relationship,” she said. “That is what the state is doing here.”

In questioning Holm, Justice Laurie McKinnon said that the court’s decision in a case last year had established a precedent that abortions are generally safe.

As is typical, the court took no immediate action after Wednesday’s arguments. Justice Beth Baker presided over the hearing in place of Chief Justice Mike McGrath, who recused himself from the case. Baker said the court would release their decision in due course.

This isn’t the only abortion-related case the Supreme Court is considering right now. They’ve also received an appeal, challenging a ruling from Knudsen’s office that blocked a ballot measure that would specifically protect access to abortion in the Montana Constitution. The office said the proposed amendment violated Montana’s requirement that unrelated constitutional changes be voted on separately.

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Montana

At Largest ICE Detention Camp, Staff Bet on Detainee Suicides, AP Reports

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7 hours ago

March 7, 2026

Press Room

At Largest ICE Detention Camp, Staff Bet on Detainee Suicides, AP Reports

A sign marks the entrance to a series of hardened tents at the Camp East Montana immigrant detention center in the desert at a U.S. Army base on the outskirts of El Paso, Texas, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. Morgan Lee/AP

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This story contains discussion of suicide. If you or someone you care about may be at risk of suicide, contact the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988, or go to 988lifeline.org.

Staff at the nation’s largest Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility have placed bets on which detainee will be the next to die by suicide, according to new reporting from the Associated Press based on 911 calls and detainee accounts.

Owen Ramsingh, a legal permanent resident who spent several weeks at the Camp East Montana detention facility in Texas, told AP that he overheard a security guard talking about a betting pool for which detainee would next die by suicide. The guard said he had paid $500 into the pot, which would all go to the winner with the most accurate predictions on detainees harming themselves.

Without providing details, the Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told AP that Ramsingh, who was brought to the US at age 5 from the Netherlands, was lying about the suicide bets.

In January, staff at Camp East Montana called 911 to request emergency help for Geraldo Lunas Campos, a 55-year-old from Cuba. DHS described his death as an attempted suicide. A medical examiner later ruled it a homicide. That same month, staff at the detention facility called 911 to report that a 36-year-old Nicaraguan man died by suicide. The AP reports that “detainees attempted to harm themselves while expressing suicidal ideations on at least six other occasions that resulted in 911 calls.”

Once the site of an internment camp for Japanese Americans during World War II, Camp East Montana is made up of six long tents at the Fort Bliss Army base outside of El Paso. On an average day, the facility holds around 3,000 detainees who are living in harsh conditions: They lack sufficient food and often go without proper medical care, according to AP’s review of 130 calls made to 911. Those calls took place in just about five months—from when the tents were quickly constructed in mid-August to January 20.

“Every day felt like a week. Every week felt like a month. Every month felt like a year,”Ramsingh said. He lived in Columbia, Missouri before being stopped at the airport by DHS and sent to Camp East Montana last year. Despite holding a green card and being married to a US citizen, he was deported to the Netherlands in February over a drug conviction from when he was a teenager (which he served prison time for). “Camp East Montana was 1,000% worse than a prison,” Ramsingh added.

Ramsingh said that the alledged bets on who would die by suicide were especially difficult because he had contemplated suicide himself.

While ICE data shows that the average stay at the tents is around nine days, detainees can be stuck at the camp for months as the courts struggle to accommodate President Donald Trump’s mass detainment and deportation campaign.

US House Rep. Veronica Escobar, a Democrat who represents part of El Paso and has toured Camp East Montana, told AP that the facility “should not be operational.”

“It feels like this contractor is reinventing the wheel,” she said, “ and people are losing their lives in their experiment.”

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Montana

Encore of the Heart: Montana Performer Makes Comeback After Heart Attack | AHA

Published

19 hours ago

March 7, 2026

Press Room

Encore of the Heart: Montana Performer Makes Comeback After Heart Attack | AHA

Frankee Angel, a lifelong performer, found her world upended when she suffered a sudden medical emergency just before playing piano at St. Patrick’s Church. Unaware that she had already survived one heart attack, she was shocked to learn she was in the midst of a second. The damage was severe—her heart’s ejection fraction had fallen to 15%, indicating advanced heart failure.

Under the care of the cardiology team at Intermountain Health St. James Hospital, Angel began a long journey toward stabilizing and strengthening her heart. Providers monitored her closely, adjusting medications and helping her manage complications like fluid buildup. Their goal was to prepare her for an implantable cardiac defibrillator (ICD), a device that could protect her from dangerous heart rhythms. In July 2025, once her body was ready, the device was successfully implanted.

Angel immediately felt renewed energy and affectionately named the ICD “Minerva,” after her old stage persona. “It’s a miracle! I’m able to live like the person I am meant to be,” she said.

With the support of cardiac rehabilitation and her dedicated care team, Angel gradually reclaimed her identity as a performer. She returned to playing piano during mass and is now preparing for a role in Macbeth. Her story highlights the broader impact of St. James Hospital’s “Hearts in the Mountains” initiative, launched in 2022 to expand heart-failure care in rural Montana—a program that has helped reduce cardiology readmission rates from 30% to 11.4%.

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Montana

Montana State announces spring football schedule; Nolan Askelson joins coaching staff

Published

1 day ago

March 6, 2026

Press Room

Montana State announces spring football schedule; Nolan Askelson joins coaching staff

BOZEMAN — Montana State will begin spring football practices March 24.

The reigning national champion Bobcats will hold 12 practices, two scrimmages and the Sonny Holland Spring Classic over the course of five weeks. The Sonny Holland Spring Classic is scheduled for Saturday, April 25.

Also on the schedule is the MSU Pro Day, which will be held April 2.

In addition to releasing the spring practice schedule, Montana State confirmed the addition of Nolan Askelson to the coaching staff. Askelson, a Billings Senior High School alum, will be an assistant defensive line coach for Bobby Daly, who is returning as Montana State’s defensive coordinator after spending last season at UTEP.

Askelson was a standout linebacker for the Bobcats, capping his MSU career with first-team All-Big Sky Conference honors in 2023. He played in four games as a true freshman in 2018 before becoming a regular rotation player in 2019. An injury shortened his 2021 season, but he played 11 games in 2022 and finished with 64 tackles.

As a senior in 2023, Askelson wore Montana State’s legacy No. 41 jersey and led the team with 84 tackles, eight tackles-for-loss and two sacks.

In high school, he was a two-time all-state selection for Senior and helped the Broncs win Class AA state championships in 2016 and 2017.

Montana State spring football schedule

Tuesday, March 24 — Practice, 7:05 a.m.

Thursday, March 26 — Practice, 7:05 a.m.

Friday, March 27 — Practice, 7:05 a.m.

Monday, March 30 — Practice, 7:05 a.m.

Wednesday, April 1 — Practice, 7:05 a.m.

Thursday, April 2 — Pro Day (no practice)

Friday, April 3 — Practice, 7:05 a.m.

Saturday, April 4 — Practice, 10:05 a.m.

Tuesday, April 7 — Practice, 7:05 a.m.