HELENA — Leaders with the Montana Division of Justice got here into the 2023 state legislative session saying they have been coping with a major rise in circumstances. Lawmakers responded by giving them extra sources to handle points like unlawful medicine, human trafficking, sexual assault and the continuing disaster of lacking and murdered indigenous individuals.

“I believe Montana cares about public security,” mentioned Bryan Lockerby, administrator of DOJ’s Division of Legal Investigation. “Residents need to be protected, and now we now have some instruments to have the ability to do this.”

The division studies that drug trafficking job forces in Montana seized thrice as a lot fentanyl in 2022 as they did in 2021. The numbers have risen dramatically during the last three years.

DOJ leaders backed Home Invoice 791, sponsored by Rep. Courtenay Sprunger, R-Kalispell, which might improve obligatory sentences for individuals who distribute giant quantities of fentanyl or associated medicine – to a minimal of two years in jail or a $50,000 tremendous.

“The fact is we’re not focusing on individuals who have a substance abuse downside; that is not our aim,” Lockerby mentioned. “We’re attempting to get these individuals which might be dealing medicine which might be killing our residents. We’ve this large quantity of overdoses, this flood of fentanyl – and now to have some tooth with a few of these statutes, it provides us some leverage to work these circumstances and put the best individuals in jail as properly.”

The division additionally supported Home Invoice 112, sponsored by Rep. Jodee Etchart, R-Billings, and signed into legislation by Gov. Greg Gianforte final month. The invoice made a significant overhaul to the state’s human trafficking legal guidelines, consolidating a wide range of current legal guidelines into 4 up to date offenses – intercourse trafficking, aggravated intercourse trafficking, youngster intercourse trafficking and labor trafficking – and establishing obligatory minimal sentences for essentially the most critical offenses.

Lockerby mentioned these circumstances have been difficult for investigators to deal with.

“It takes time to determine the suspects as a result of they transfer round so much – it is a very migratory sort of an offense,” he mentioned. “So not solely on the line degree does it take a number of work to analyze, it’s extremely tough to prosecute as properly. A number of the new statutes that went by way of are actually going to help us with that.”

Leaders are additionally persevering with their work to enhance the dealing with of sexual assault circumstances, with two payments signed into legislation final month. Home Invoice 640, sponsored by Rep. Naarah Hastings, R-Billings, requires legislation enforcement to carry sexual assault proof kits for 75 years. Home Invoice 79, sponsored by Rep. Amy Regier, R-Kalispell, creates a sexual assault response community program inside DOJ that can deal with bettering entry to nurse examiners educated in responding to those circumstances.

“In case you can think about what it is like for a survivor of one thing as horrific as that to have to attend to be processed to drive 3 hours to Billings or one thing, now we will do that remotely,” Lockerby mentioned. “We’ve a coordinator to arrange that sort of a program.”

Could 5 is Lacking and Murdered Indigenous Individuals Consciousness Day. Teams just like the Helena Indian Alliance aimed to deliver consideration to the continuing disaster by displaying purple attire – every representing an indigenous girl or lady who’s lacking or murdered.

Indigenous individuals make up about 6% of Montana’s inhabitants, however as of Could 1, almost 1 / 4 of lively lacking individuals circumstances in Montana are indigenous individuals. In line with statistics from the Lawyer Normal Austin Knudsen’s workplace, 41 of the 170 at present lively circumstances within the state contain indigenous individuals. Of these, 20 have been lacking for greater than a 12 months, and 15 are beneath the age of 21.

The Legislature authorized a pair of payments from Rep. Tyson Operating Wolf, D-Browning. Home Invoice 163 would prolong the state lacking individuals job drive by way of 2033 and supply a full-time coordinator by way of DOJ.

“The Lacking and Murdered indigenous Individuals Activity Pressure has been instrumental in serving to present some steerage in how we will strengthen legal guidelines, and in addition sort of shut some gaps,” mentioned Lockerby. “We have been rather more public about with the ability to present data on lacking individuals.”

Home Invoice 18, already signed into legislation, creates a brand new program to offer coaching for community-based lacking individual response groups.

“Serving to with search events, in order that they’ll have some construction and group and planning,” Lockerby mentioned. “Moderately than individuals simply going out on their very own attempting to do the best factor, now we will have a greater plan.”

Lockerby says his division may even obtain a number of further investigators to deal with main circumstances like officer-involved shootings, in addition to an agent to deal with pc forensics – engaged on figuring out and extracting the info saved in digital units.

“I believe the message is evident, and it is one thing that our lawyer common mentioned: We’ve your again,” Lockerby mentioned. “And I believe that message got here not solely from our lawyer common, it got here from the Legislature, it got here from the governor, and it trickles all the way down to our group. I believe it is a very constructive factor.”