Missoula County

Missoula County officials have announced a new program intended to better address widespread intimate partner violence cases. Missoula’s new Domestic Violence Court aims to accelerate the timeline in cases involving partner violence.

Extreme heat and bone-dry conditions are prompting officials to raise the fire danger and implement burning restrictions in parts of western Montana.

A group of parents known as Stand Up Montana brought two cases in Gallatin and Missoula counties where mask rules were implemented in districts last school year in order to limit the spread of the coronavirus.

Missoula officials on Monday, July 18, raised the fire danger in the county to ‘high’ due to increasing temperatures and drying vegetation.

About two-thirds of Montana counties are seeing medium to high impacts on healthcare facilities as a result of rising COVID-19 cases.

Missoula County’s new protocol, put in place in mid April, changes the way first responders and law enforcement respond to strangulation and prioritize the cases for prosecution.

Earlier this month Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte announced the state had ordered 650,000 rapid COVID-19 tests. Those test kits are now rolling in, and counties like Missoula are starting to announce distribution locations and times.

Missoula, Park and Yellowstone counties each approved a 3% local tax on recreational marijuana, according to the unofficial results.

Voters in three counties this week have one more chance to weigh-in on local cannabis taxation policy before sales begin in January.

“We're just hoping that making some of these changes will help speed up our ability to get through the large number of new cases and close contacts that are coming in every day," Missoula COVID-19 Incident Commander Cindy Farr says.