Mont. Code Ann. § 45-5-206

(2011)

Partner or family member assault -- penalty

(1) A person commits the offense of partner or family member assault if the person:

(a) purposely or knowingly causes bodily injury to a partner or family member;

(b) negligently causes bodily injury to a partner or family member with a weapon; or

(c) purposely or knowingly causes reasonable apprehension of bodily injury in a partner or family member.

(2) For the purposes of Title 40, chapter 15, 45-5-231 through 45-5-234, 46-6-311, and this section, the following definitions apply:

(a) "Family member" means mothers, fathers, children, brothers, sisters, and other past or present family members of a household. These relationships include relationships created by adoption and remarriage, including stepchildren, stepparents, in-laws, and adoptive children and parents. These relationships continue regardless of the ages of the parties and whether the parties reside in the same household.

(b) "Partners" means spouses, former spouses, persons who have a child in common, and persons who have been or are currently in a dating or ongoing intimate relationship with a person of the opposite sex.

(3) (a) (i) An offender convicted of partner or family member assault shall be fined an amount not less than $100 or more than $1,000 and be imprisoned in the county jail for a term not to exceed 1 year or not less than 24 hours for a first offense.

(ii) An offender convicted of a second offense under this section shall be fined not less than $300 or more than $1,000 and be imprisoned in the county jail not less than 72 hours or more than 1 year.

(iii) Upon a first or second conviction, the offender may be ordered into misdemeanor probation as provided in 46-23-1005.

(iv) On a third or subsequent conviction for partner or family member assault, the offender shall be fined not less than $500 and not more than $50,000 and be imprisoned for a term not less than 30 days and not more than 5 years. If the term of imprisonment does not exceed 1 year, the person shall be imprisoned in the county jail. If the term of imprisonment exceeds 1 year, the person shall be imprisoned in the state prison.

(v) If the offense was committed within the vision or hearing of a minor, the judge shall consider the minor's presence as a factor at the time of sentencing.

(b) (i) For the purpose of determining the number of convictions under this section, a conviction means a conviction, as defined in 45-2-101, in this state, conviction for a violation of a similar statute in another state, or a forfeiture of bail or collateral deposited to secure the defendant's appearance in court in this state or in another state for a violation of a similar statute, which forfeiture has not been vacated. A prior conviction for domestic abuse under this section is a prior conviction for purposes of subsection (3)(a).

(ii) A conviction for assault with a weapon under 45-5-213, if the offender was a partner or family member of the victim, constitutes a conviction for the purpose of calculating prior convictions under this section.

(4) (a) An offender convicted of partner or family member assault is required to pay for and complete a counseling assessment with a focus on violence, controlling behavior, dangerousness, and chemical dependency. An investigative criminal justice report, as defined in 45-5-231, must be copied and sent to the offender intervention program, as defined in 45-5-231, to assist the counseling provider in properly assessing the offender's need for counseling and treatment. Counseling providers shall take all required precautions to ensure the confidentiality of the report. If the report contains confidential information relating to the victim's location or not related to the charged offense, that information must be deleted from the report prior to being sent to the offender intervention program.

(b) The offender shall complete all recommendations for counseling, referrals, attendance at psychoeducational groups, or treatment, including any indicated chemical dependency treatment, made by the counseling provider. The counseling provider must be approved by the court. The counseling must include a preliminary assessment for counseling, as defined in 45-5-231. The offender shall complete a minimum of 40 hours of counseling. The counseling may include attendance at psychoeducational groups, as defined in 45-5-231, in addition to the assessment. The preliminary assessment and counseling that holds the offender accountable for the offender's violent or controlling behavior must be:

(i) with a person licensed under Title 37, chapter 17, 22, or 23;

(ii) with a professional person as defined in 53-21-102; or

(iii) in a specialized domestic violence intervention program.

(c) The minimum counseling and attendance at psychoeducational groups provided in subsection (4)(b) must be directed to the violent or controlling conduct of the offender. Other issues indicated by the assessment may be addressed in additional counseling beyond the minimum 40 hours. Subsection (4)(b) does not prohibit the placement of the offender in other appropriate treatment if the court determines that there is no available treatment program directed to the violent or controlling conduct of the offender.

(5) In addition to any sentence imposed under subsections (3) and (4), after determining the financial resources and future ability of the offender to pay restitution as provided for in 46-18-242, the court shall require the offender, if able, to pay the victim's reasonable actual medical, housing, wage loss, and counseling costs.

(6) In addition to the requirements of subsection (5), if financially able, the offender must be ordered to pay for the costs of the offender's probation, if probation is ordered by the court.

(7) The court may prohibit an offender convicted under this section from possession or use of the firearm used in the assault. The court may enforce 45-8-323 if a firearm was used in the assault.

(8) The court shall provide an offender with a written copy of the offender's sentence at the time of sentencing or within 2 weeks of sentencing if the copy is sent electronically or by mail.

Opinions construing this section

84 opinions
2026 MT 163N Jul 21, 2026 Affirmed
R. Allen v. State
Majority by Beth Baker · 5 to 0
d not show he was entitled to relief. We affirm. ¶3 Allen pleaded guilty to a charge of felony partner or family member assault (PFMA) on July 25, 2017. See § 45-5-206(1)(a), MCA. The District Court sentenced Allen to the Montana State Prison for a term of three years, none suspended. Later, the State charged Allen with failure to reg
2025 MT 222N Sep 30, 2025 Affirmed
State v. Lowry
Majority by Laurie McKinnon · 5 to 0
October 6, 2020. L.L. disclosed the assault to law enforcement over one year later. The State charged Lowry with Partner or Family Member Assault (PFMA) under § 45-5-206(1)(a), MCA, on March 25, 2022. Lowry made his initial appearance in Justice Court on the PFMA charge on March 7, 20221. Lowry failed to appear at his arraignment on March
2025 MT 143 Jul 8, 2025 Reversed
State v. D. Baertsch
Majority by Katherine M Bidegaray · 4 to 0 with 3 concurring
hat,” K.W. answered that he “[j]ust basically took off” and “ran out.” ¶7 The State charged Baertsch with Partner or Family Member Assault (PFMA) (§ 45-5-206(1)(c), MCA); Criminal Mischief (§ 45-6-101(1)(a), MCA); and Burglary (§ 45-6-204(1)(b), MCA). Later, the State amended the Information which alleged, in pertinent part,
2025 MT 118N Jun 3, 2025 Affirmed
B. Rogers v. State
Majority by Cory J. Swanson · 5 to 0
n 2016, he pleaded guilty to Failure to Register as a Sexual Offender, in violation of § 46-23-507, MCA, and Partner or Family Member Assault, in violation of § 45-5-206, MCA. The District Court sentenced Rogers to the Department of Corrections (DOC) for five years, all suspended, on the failure to register conviction. After Rogers
2025 MT 62 Apr 1, 2025 Reversed
State v. K. Denny
Majority by Katherine M Bidegaray · 5 to 2
Family Member Strangulation (PFM Strangulation), a felony in violation of § 45-5-215(1)(a), MCA; Count II, PFM Assault (PFMA), a misdemeanor in violation of § 45-5-206(1)(a), MCA; and Count III, Destruction/Tampering with a Communication Device, a misdemeanor in violation of § 45-6-105(1)(a), MCA. The State alleged that, during an argu
Official Annotations archive.org, 2011 edition
History:
En. Sec. 1, Ch. 700, L. 1985
Amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 480, L. 1989
Amd. Sec. 257, Ch. 800, L. 1991
Amd. Sec. 2, Ch. 425, L. 1993
Amd. Sec. 51, Ch. 18, L. 1995
Amd. Sec. 10, Ch. 350, L. 1995
Amd. Sec. 2, Ch. 245, L. 1997
Amd. Sec. 5, Ch. 484, L. 1997
Amd. Sec. 8, Ch. 432, L. 1999 (HB 203 - Shockley, Jim (R) HD 61)
Amd. Sec. 6, Ch. 503, L. 2001 (HB 313 - Masolo, Gay Ann (R) HD 40)
Amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 438, L. 2003