Montana
Montana Supreme Court decides registered nurses and midwives can continue providing abortion care
HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Montana’s Supreme Court ruled unanimously Friday that advanced-practice registered nurses can continue to provide abortion care in the state, likely setting up legal clashes with the 2023 Legislature, which passed restrictive laws saying only physicians can perform abortions.
The state failed to prove that an abortion performed by a family nurse practitioner or certified nurse-midwife presents more risk to the patient than abortions provided by physicians or physician assistants, according to the opinion written by Justice Laurie McKinnon.
“This case was not about the right to abortion — it was about whether women have a right to an elevated standard of care during an abortion,” said Emilee Cantrell, spokeswoman for the Montana Department of Justice. “The Montana Supreme Court said ‘no’ and lowered the standard of care set by the Legislature, effectively constitutionalizing the right of unqualified individuals to perform unregulated abortions.”
Montana is one of at least 19 states that allow advanced-practice registered nurses to provide abortion care. APRNs have at least a master’s degree in nursing.
Justices found that a law making it a felony for providers other than physicians and physician assistants to perform abortions violated the patient’s fundamental right to privacy to seek a pre-viability abortion from the qualified health care provider of her choosing — a standard set in a 1999 Supreme Court ruling in the Armstrong case.
“Allowing APRNs to perform these services ensures Montanans maintain their constitutional right to access the quality healthcare they need,” Alex Rate, ACLU of Montana’s interim co-executive director, said in a statement.
Friday’s opinion upholds a February 2022 ruling by District Court Judge Mike Menahan, who found that a 2005 law that implemented the Armstrong ruling by also allowing physician assistants to provide abortion care was unconstitutional because it did not include properly trained APRNs.
The justices said court evidence showed APRNs are capable of providing care for miscarriages or stillbirths, and that early abortion procedures such as medication and aspiration abortions require similar care. The state did not argue that APRNs present a genuine health and safety risk when providing miscarriage care, the justices noted.
Montana’s 2023 Legislature passed several bills to restrict abortion access, including provisions to only allow physicians to provide abortion care, to require prior authorization before Medicaid pays for abortions and to prevent the most common abortion procedure used in the second trimester of pregnancy. Also, a bill advanced that seeks to make the court reconsider the Armstrong ruling, by saying that the state’s constitutional right to privacy does not include the right to an abortion.
The Montana Supreme Court noted that the state did not ask it to overturn the Armstrong ruling during the course of the case initially brought by Helen Weems, an APRN who owns a sexual and reproductive health clinic in Whitefish.
“Montana lawmakers have been relentless in their efforts to restrict access to essential health care,” Weems said in a statement.
Under earlier rulings in the case, Weems has been allowed to provide abortion care since 2018. Other APRNs, with proper training, were allowed to begin performing abortions after Menahan’s 2022 ruling.
“It is more important than ever to protect our patients and their ability to make decisions about their health and families,” Weems said. “I look forward to continuing to make abortion care more accessible in our state.”
BOZEMAN: A 41-year-old Montana man was charged with murder Friday in a brutal slaying at a remote campsite that had been initially reported as a possible bear mauling by people who found the victim’s body.
The suspect allegedly told authorities that he arrived at the campsite northeast of Big Sky, Montana, on Oct 10 intending to stay the night but found it occupied by 35-year-old Dustin Kjersem.
Kjersem, who didn’t know the suspect, welcomed him to the campsite and offered him a beer, according to Gallatin County Sheriff Dan Springer.
But sometime later the suspect driven by an unknown motive hit Kjersem with a piece of wood, stabbed him in the neck with a screwdriver and hit him with an axe, Springer said.
The victim’s girlfriend and another friend found his body Oct 12 and reported it as a possible bear attack. It turned into a homicide investigation after wildlife agents found no sign of a bear in the area.
After DNA found on a beer can from the campsite was matched with the suspect’s DNA, he was tracked down this week and arrested in Butte, Montana, Springer said.
He was being held on $1.5 million bail, according to sheriff’s department records.
Montana Lottery players lined up for a chance to win $1 million on Friday morning.
The lottery announced that ticket sales for the annual Montana Millionaire drawing would start at 5:30 a.m on Nov. 1.
The lottery game had 500,000 tickets available for purchase. Within three hours, tickets were sold out.
“The demand for Montana Millionaire this year has been absolutely incredible,” Bob Brown, the director of the Montana Lottery, said in a statement. “We knew tickets would sell fast, but under a 3-hour sellout for 500,000 tickets is truly unprecedented.”
On the lottery’s Instagram page, players are seen in long lines for a chance to try their luck at the million-dollar game. Only four people can win the grand prize.
To have a chance at winning a prize, interested players paid $20 to play the game, the lottery said.
“The Montana Millionaire lottery is back, and this year is the biggest yet!” Three Amigos Mexican Restaurant & Cantina, a retailer for the Montana Millionaire tickets, wrote in a Facebook post. “With 500,000 tickets up for grabs and FOUR massive $1 million grand prizes, 2024 could be your lucky year.”
Montana Millionaire players could also win ‘Quarter Million Monday’
Players will also have a chance at winning $250,000 in the “Quarter Million Monday” drawing on Dec. 2, the lottery said.
All players that purchased a ticket on Nov. 1 are eligible for the “Quarter Million Monday” drawing on Dec. 2 and the “Grand Prize” drawing on Dec. 26, the lottery said.
Montana Millionaire game sold out quickly in 2023
The Montana Lottery said that tickets for the 2023 game sold out in five hours.
In 2024, the lottery added 120,000 more tickets for players to purchase.
What are the odds of winning Montana Millionaire?
The overall odds of winning a prize in Montana Millionaire are 1 in 73.5, the lottery said.
Here is a table that shows the odds of winning for each drawing.
Can’t see the table? Click here to view it.
The lottery said that the odds for the “Quarter Million Monday” drawing Prize will depend on how many tickets are sold before the drawing deadline.
How to play Montana Millionaire
To play Montana Millionaire you must purchase a $20 ticket. Tickets can be purchased at any Montana Lottery retailer (i.e. convenience stores, bars/taverns, grocery stores, and casinos), the lottery said. In addition, players can purchase tickets at all of the lottery’s self-service terminals throughout the state.
Unlike traditional lottery games, Montana Millionaire does not have a play slip or numbers for players to choose, the lottery explains. Instead, every player that buys a ticket will be given a number that ranges from 000001 to 500000.
The deadline for the limited-ticket game was originally set for Dec. 25 at midnight, the lottery said. However, once tickets are sold out they are gone.
Ahjané Forbes is a reporter on the National Trending Team at USA TODAY. Ahjané covers breaking news, car recalls, crime, food recalls, health, lottery, and public policy stories. Email her at aforbes@gannett.com. Follow her on Instagram, Threads and X (Twitter) @forbesfineest.
A Montana man found slain in his tent this month welcomed the suspect in his killing, a stranger, to his campsite and offered him a beer, the Gallatin County sheriff said Thursday.
Daren Christopher Abbey, 41, was arrested this week and charged with deliberate homicide in the killing of Dustin Kjersem, 35, whose body was found in his tent near Big Sky on Oct. 12, officials said.
It was a “chance encounter” at the campsite on the night of Oct. 10, and Abbey did not know Kjersem, Sheriff Dan Springer said at a news conference.
Abbey had planned to camp at the site, but when he arrived that night he found Kjersem was already there, with a wall tent, beds and a stove, Springer said.
Abbey in a confession to detectives, “stated Dustin welcomed him to the campsite and offered him a beer,” Springer said.
“At some point, this individual struck Dustin Kjersem with a piece of solid wood, stabbed him in the neck with a screwdriver and ultimately hit him with the ax,” Springer said. “The motives of this attack are still unknown.”
The state crime lab matched DNA from a beer can found in the tent to Abbey, Springer said.
Abbey was arrested Saturday in Butte, around 80 miles northwest of Big Sky. He was interviewed by sheriff’s detectives and Montana Justice Department investigators Tuesday and confessed to the killing, Springer said.
Kjersem planned to spend the weekend at the campsite with his girlfriend. He set up the camp on Oct. 10, a Thursday, and he planned to pick his girlfriend up from work the next night, Springer said.
Kjersem never arrived. The girlfriend and a friend drove to the campsite on Oct. 12, a Saturday, and found Kjersem dead in the tent, Springer said.
Kjersem’s injuries were such that the person who reported discovering his body suspected he had been attacked by a bear, the sheriff’s office has said. An autopsy confirmed it was homicide, not an animal attack.
Abbey had been living in a couple of different areas but most recently had a residence in Basin, Montana, a small community in the mountains northeast of Butte, Springer said. He had been employed in the Big Sky area at various times, Springer said.
Abbey was arrested on a probation violation in Butte but is charged with deliberate homicide in Kjersem’s death, the sheriff’s office said.
State Corrections Department records show Abbey was on conditional release after a prison sentence for a 2020 repeat driving under the influence case.
Abbey was being held in custody Thursday night without bond, jail records show. It was not immediately clear whether he had an attorney who could speak on his behalf.
The investigation could take months more. Springer said detectives will work to put together more pieces of what occurred, including what motive Abbey might have had.
“We have a bit of his story, but we don’t really know what the true story is,” Springer said. “We have a story — we just don’t know if it’s accurate.”
Springer said that after he killed Kjersem, Abbey removed items he may have touched or which could connect him to the crime, including a cooler and the ax. He returned the next night and took more items, Springer said.
The sheriff’s office previously said an ax, a Yeti cooler, a shotgun and a revolver were missing from the campsite.
Richard Moore’s final words before South Carolina execution
Obituary for Marlan John Velgersdyk at Miller Funeral Home & On-Site Crematory
Titans WRs Must Step Up vs. Patriots
What channel is Iowa State vs. Texas Tech football on today? TV schedule for Week 10 game
Does Utah play today? College football schedule for Utes’ next game after Week 10 bye
Colorado Rockies game no. 116 thread: Zac Gallen vs José Ureña
See it: Tesla crashes into Columbus convention center at 70 mph
Fox News Politics: Georgia the whole day through
Death of missing Oregon girl found in stream ruled homicide
At least 2 dead as tornadoes hit Alabama, damage homes across Southeast
Video: Our Photographers’ Favorite Campaign Trail Photos
Early in-person voting ending Saturday in North Carolina, New Mexico, South Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia
Brussels, my love? Instability in Georgia overshadows EU enlargement
Who is Liz Cheney? Trump fantasises her being shot during chat with Tucker Carlson
Opponents of antisemitism on campus frustrated by Schumer's failure to move on legislation: 'Stunning'
-
Movie Reviews1 week agoAlien Country (2024) – Movie Review
-
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25431700/STK201_SAM_ALTMAN_CVIRGINIA_A.jpg "OpenAI plans to release its next big AI model by December")
Technology1 week agoOpenAI plans to release its next big AI model by December
-
Health1 week agoNew cervical cancer treatment approach could reduce risk of death by 40%, trial results show
-
Culture1 week agoTop 45 MLB free agents for 2024-25 with contract predictions, team fits: Will Soto get $600M+?
-
Sports7 days agoFreddie Freeman's walk-off grand slam gives Dodgers Game 1 World Series win vs. Yankees
-
News6 days agoSikh separatist, targeted once for assassination, says India still trying to kill him
-
Culture6 days agoFreddie Freeman wallops his way into World Series history with walk-off slam that’ll float forever
-
Technology6 days agoWhen a Facebook friend request turns into a hacker’s trap