Montana Domestic Violence Guide
What a PFMA charge is, what the court orders mean, what happens after an arrest, and how these cases are defended. Written by Missoula attorneys, with the statute cited for every rule.
Written by
Ashley Hurlbert, Partner, A&M Law
Licensed Montana attorney and co-founder of A&M Law. 18 years of experience as lead counsel in 50+ jury and bench trials. A Certified Mediator and Certified Guardian ad Litem focusing on family law, criminal defense, and DUI defense.
People look up Montana domestic violence law at three different moments. Some want to understand a rule: who counts as a partner, or what a no contact order actually forbids. Some were arrested or served with papers this week and need to know what happens next. And some have decided they need a lawyer and are working out what a defense looks like.
This guide is organized around those three moments. Each article answers one question, cites the section of the Montana Code Annotated or federal law it relies on, and says so when the law does not give a clear answer.
If you already know the charge you are facing, our domestic violence defense and PFMA defense pages are the faster route. If you would rather talk it through, call 406-830-3060.
If you are in danger, call 911. The National Domestic Violence Hotline is available at 1-800-799-7233 at any hour.
Understand the Charge
What partner or family member assault is, the charges that travel with it, how police respond, and the two kinds of court order.
The PFMA Charge
What Is PFMA?
Partner or family member assault under MCA 45-5-206: the three ways it is charged and what it carries.
Who Is a Partner or Family Member
Spouses, exes, co-parents, dating partners, relatives and in-laws. Who the statute lists and who it does not.
What Bodily Injury Means
Pain, illness, or impairment. Why a visible mark is not required and how injury is proved.
PFMA Without Touching
Reasonable apprehension of bodily injury: the form of PFMA that needs no contact.
Purposely, Knowingly, Negligently
The mental states in the PFMA statute, and why a true accident is not PFMA.
PFMA vs. Assault
Elements, jail minimums, counseling and firearm issues compared with misdemeanor assault.
Is PFMA a Felony?
First and second offenses are misdemeanors. A third or later carries 30 days to 5 years.
How Prior Convictions Count
The seven things that count as a prior under 45-5-206(3)(b). There is no lookback period.
PFMA Against a Parent, Sibling or Child
Family members who are not partners, and the limited rule on parental discipline.
PFMA in Dating Relationships
Current and former dating partners, same-sex couples, and people who never lived together.
When Both People Are Arrested
Mutual aggression and Montana's predominant aggressor rule, with its six listed factors.
PFMA in Front of Children
A sentencing factor, a separate child endangerment charge, and child protection reports.
Related Charges
Strangulation of a Partner
The separate strangulation statute, its prison-level penalties, and the other charges filed with PFMA.
Aggravated Assault on a Partner
What serious bodily injury means, the 20-year maximum, and how it counts as a PFMA prior.
Assault With a Weapon on a Partner
How Montana defines a weapon, the penalty, and the no contact order that follows.
Stalking Charges
Course of conduct, the fear or distress element, GPS and messaging, and when it carries prison.
Violating an Order of Protection
What the State must prove and the penalties for a first, second, and third offense.
Violating a No Contact Order
Each contact is a separate offense, and the protected person's consent is not a defense.
Privacy in Communications
Threatening or harassing messages, hidden recordings, and intimate images under one statute.
Witness Tampering
Why asking someone to change a statement or skip court is a new charge with up to 10 years.
Endangerment & Unlawful Restraint
Criminal endangerment, unlawful restraint, and kidnapping as charges added to a PFMA case.
Property Damage in a Domestic Dispute
Criminal mischief over shared property, broken phones, and trespass at a shared home.
Endangering the Welfare of Children
The added charge when a child is present, its 72-hour minimum, and reports to DPHHS.
Disorderly Conduct vs. PFMA
How the two offenses differ in elements, penalty, and what follows a conviction.
Police Response & Arrest
When Police Are Called
What Montana officers must do on a domestic call, from the arrest decision to the no contact order.
Does Someone Have to Go to Jail?
Arrest is the preferred response in Montana, not a mandatory one. What the statute says.
Predominant Aggressor Factors
The six considerations officers must weigh when both people appear to have used force.
Talking to Police at the Scene
Your right to remain silent, when Miranda applies, and how statements reach the report.
Police Entering Your Home
Warrants, consent from the other occupant, emergencies, and Montana's privacy right.
Weapons Seized at the Scene
Which weapon officers must take on a PFMA call, and when a court can order it returned.
The 911 Call as Evidence
When a 911 recording can be played at trial, even if the caller does not testify.
Body Cameras, Photos & Medical Records
The evidence gathered in the first hour and how the defense obtains it in discovery.
Arrested Hours or Days Later
Warrants, summonses, and the 1-year and 5-year deadlines for filing a charge.
The Victim Rights Notice From Police
The written notice officers must give the alleged victim, and why the accused should know it.
You Called 911 and Got Arrested
How the caller can end up arrested, where self-defense fits, and what to preserve.
Juveniles and PFMA
Youth Court, questioning rules, outcomes, and records when the accused is under 18.
No Contact Orders & Orders of Protection
No Contact Order vs. Order of Protection
The criminal order and the civil order: who starts each, how long each lasts, and the penalties.
The 72-Hour No Contact Order
The order served at arrest: its required wording, the 72-hour rule, and the 1,500-foot limit.
No Contact as a Release Condition
What the judge sets at first appearance, how long it lasts, and orders made at sentencing.
What Counts as Contact
In person, third parties, phone, texts, social media, and writing. Why replying counts.
If the Protected Person Contacts You
An invitation is not a defense, and only you can be charged. What to do with a call or text.
Getting Your Belongings From Home
How to get clothes, medication, tools, and a vehicle through the court when you are barred.
Changing or Lifting a No Contact Order
Only the judge can change it. The first appearance review, motions, and the protected person's role.
Temporary Orders of Protection
Who can petition, what the petition must show, and what a judge can order without notice.
The Order of Protection Hearing
The 20-day deadline, what the judge decides, and how long a final order can last.
Responding to an Order of Protection
Deadlines, what to do before the hearing, and the risk of testifying with a criminal case pending.
Modifying or Ending an Order of Protection
Amending, appealing, or terminating an order, and how orders work inside a divorce.
Out-of-State and Tribal Orders
How Montana enforces protection orders from other states and tribal courts, and the federal rules.
After an Arrest
The first days, what happens in court, what a conviction carries, and what it can touch at home and at work.
The First Days After an Arrest
First 48 Hours After a PFMA Arrest
Booking, the no contact order, the wait to see a judge, and the first court appearance, in order.
Bail in a PFMA Case
Why you cannot post bail from a schedule, and how a judge decides release, amount, and conditions.
The Initial Appearance
What the judge must tell you, the question about a lawyer, release, and review of the no contact order.
Where Can I Live?
What the order controls when you cannot go home, what it does not decide, and steps with no contact.
Children and No Contact Orders
Whether the order names your children, why exchanges need court approval, and parenting plan overlap.
GPS and Alcohol Monitoring
When monitoring is presumed, how the 24/7 program reaches domestic cases, and who pays.
What Not to Do After an Arrest
The actions that create new charges or new evidence: contact, messengers, posts, deleted texts.
Preserving Evidence
What to save right away and how to save it without altering anything or contacting anyone.
Your Job After an Arrest
Missed work, telling an employer, a shared workplace, and jobs that require carrying a firearm.
Firearms During the Case
Seizure at the scene, no-firearm release conditions, and the federal rules before any conviction.
Public Defender in a PFMA Case
Who qualifies, when counsel is assigned, what it can cost, and how it compares with hiring.
Out-of-State Visitors
Court dates, appearing through a lawyer on a misdemeanor, and orders that follow you home.
Courts, Evidence & Trial
The PFMA Court Process
Which Missoula court hears the case, and each step from arraignment to appeal.
Can the Victim Drop the Charges?
The State brings the charge. Who can dismiss it, and what the other person's wishes can do.
When the Alleged Victim Recants
Subpoenas, prior statements, and the Confrontation Clause when a witness changes course.
Spousal Privilege in Domestic Cases
Montana's privilege covers marital communications, but not crimes between spouses.
Prior Acts Evidence
When a jury may hear about past incidents under Rules 404(b) and 403.
Discovery in a PFMA Case
What the prosecutor must share, what the defense must disclose, and the 30-day notice rule.
Plea Agreements in PFMA Cases
What can be negotiated, and why the exact charge matters for firearms and immigration.
Deferred Sentences and PFMA
Whether a PFMA sentence can be deferred or suspended, and what dismissal afterward means.
Jury Trial or Bench Trial
Your right to a six-person jury in a misdemeanor case, and how a jury is waived.
Appealing a PFMA Conviction
The 10-day deadline, record review versus a new trial, and Supreme Court appeals.
Speedy Trial and the 6-Month Rule
Montana's six-month misdemeanor deadline and the constitutional test for felonies.
The Alleged Victim's Role in Court
Notice, consultation, attendance, and the sentencing statement, and why only counsel makes contact.
Penalties & Sentences
PFMA Penalties Chart
Jail, fines, and counseling for a first, second, and third or subsequent PFMA, in one table.
First Offense PFMA Penalties
24 hours to 1 year, $100 to $1,000, and 40 hours of counseling. What a first conviction carries.
Second Offense PFMA Penalties
72 hours to 1 year and $300 to $1,000. Which earlier convictions count as the prior.
Third Offense PFMA: The Felony Range
30 days to 5 years, the jail versus prison line, and violent offender registration.
The PFMA Counseling Requirement
The assessment and 40-hour minimum: who can provide it, who pays, and what if you stop.
PFMA Probation Conditions
Conditions on contact, counseling, firearms, and alcohol, and how revocation works.
Strangulation Penalties
Up to 5 years for a first offense, 2 to 20 for a second, plus registration and more.
Order Violation Penalties
No contact order and order of protection violations compared, penalty by penalty.
Restitution and Court Costs
Restitution, surcharges, counseling, and supervision costs, and the rules on ability to pay.
Firearm Conditions at Sentencing
What Montana's PFMA statute says about firearms, and how the federal ban differs.
Jail Alternatives and Time Served
Credit for time served, suspended time, home arrest, and work release in a PFMA case.
The PFMA Sentencing Hearing
Who speaks, the victim's statement, presentence reports, and the written judgment.
Firearm Rights
PFMA and Gun Rights
The five places a firearm restriction can come from, and what the DeFrance decision changed.
The Federal Lautenberg Ban
18 U.S.C. 922(g)(9) piece by piece: the definition, the exceptions, and the five-year dating rule.
Does a Montana PFMA Count Federally?
What the Ninth Circuit held in United States v. DeFrance, and what it left undecided.
Orders of Protection and Guns
What a Montana order can say about firearms, and when the federal ban applies.
Felony Convictions and Firearms
The federal felony ban, Montana's narrower statute, and why restored rights may not lift it.
Hunting After a PFMA Conviction
Court orders first, then federal law: rifles, bows, muzzleloaders, and licenses.
Living With a Gun Owner
Constructive possession: when someone else's firearms at home can count as yours.
Getting Gun Rights Back
Expungement, pardon, the five-year dating rule, federal relief, and what is unsettled.
Ammunition and Other Weapons
Ammunition, gun parts, dangerous weapon conditions, and concealed weapon permits.
Police, Military & Security Jobs
Why the domestic violence ban has no duty-weapon exception, and what employers decide.
Deferred Sentences and Gun Rights
Whether a deferred sentence counts as a conviction, stage by stage, and what is unsettled.
Getting Seized Guns Back
The acquittal or court order rule, the return hearing, and transfers to a third party.
Children, Divorce & Parenting
PFMA and Child Custody
How a domestic violence charge or conviction can change a Montana parenting plan.
Parenting Plan Factors and Abuse
The exact words of MCA 40-4-212 and 40-4-219 on abuse, PFMA and strangulation convictions.
Supervised Visitation in Montana
When a Montana court orders supervised parenting time, who supervises, and how it ends.
CPS After a Domestic Call
Why Child and Family Services may contact you after a domestic incident, and what an investigation is.
Orders of Protection and Parenting Plans
What to do when an order of protection and a parenting plan seem to conflict.
Child Exchanges Under a No Contact Order
How parenting exchanges can happen lawfully when a no contact order is in place.
Divorce During a PFMA Case
Filing or answering a Montana divorce while a criminal charge is pending, and the risks to watch.
Allegations Raised in a Custody Case
How a Montana family court weighs a domestic violence allegation made during a parenting dispute.
Children as Witnesses
When a child can testify in a Montana PFMA case, child hearsay, and keeping kids out of the middle.
The Home and Bills During the Case
Who stays in the house and who pays what while a no contact order is in place.
Relocating With Children
Montana's notice rules for a parent's move, and how safety and protective orders fit in.
Termination of Parental Rights Risk
A PFMA conviction alone does not end parental rights. What termination actually requires in Montana.
Record, Work & Daily Life
How Long a PFMA Stays on Your Record
A PFMA conviction does not age off. Who can see it and the routes to clearing it.
Expunging a PFMA in Montana
One petition in a lifetime, and no presumption for PFMA. What a judge weighs.
Dismissal After a Deferred Sentence
How a deferred PFMA sentence ends in dismissal, and what stays visible afterward.
PFMA and Background Checks
What employers and landlords can see, and the federal limits on reporting.
PFMA and Professional Licenses
How Montana licensing boards treat a conviction involving violence.
Immigration Consequences of a PFMA
The federal deportation ground for domestic violence, and what to do before a plea.
Military Service and a PFMA
The firearm ban has no military exception. How civilian and military systems overlap.
PFMA and Housing
Renting with a record, assisted housing rules, and protections for victims.
Traveling to Canada With a PFMA
Why a misdemeanor can bar entry to Canada, and three ways to overcome it.
Violent Offender Registry and PFMA
Which domestic violence convictions require registration, and for how long.
Voting, Jury Service and Civil Rights
What a misdemeanor or felony changes in Montana, and when rights are restored.
College Students and PFMA
Campus conduct cases, Title IX basics, and financial aid after a charge.
Building a Defense
How these charges are defended, and how to decide who should defend yours.
Defenses & Evidence
PFMA Defenses: An Overview
The main defenses to a PFMA charge and the element of the offense each one tests.
Self-Defense in a PFMA Case
Justifiable use of force: the reasonable belief test, aggressor limits, notice, and the State's burden.
Defending Your Home or Property
When force to protect a home or belongings is justified, and why it is narrow between co-occupants.
Defending Your Child or Someone Else
Defense of another person, and a parent's reasonable force to restrain or correct a child.
No Injury, No Fear
How bodily injury and reasonable apprehension are defined, and how those elements are contested.
It Was an Accident
PFMA requires a purposeful or knowing act, or negligence with a weapon. What that means for accidents.
Not a Partner or Family Member
When the relationship element fails, the charge may be assault. Why that label matters.
When the Accusation Is Untrue
Building a denial from records, timelines, and witnesses, and the mistakes to avoid.
Alcohol and Intoxication
Being intoxicated is not a defense in Montana. How alcohol evidence still shapes a case.
Suppressing Statements and Evidence
Unlawful entry, Miranda, and involuntary statements: what a motion to suppress can and cannot do.
Texts, Photos, and Digital Evidence
How messages and photos are authenticated and challenged, and why you never delete anything.
Can a PFMA Be Dismissed or Reduced?
Dismissal, diversion, and amended charges: the routes the law provides and who decides.
Hiring a Lawyer
Do I Need a Lawyer for a PFMA?
What a first conviction carries, and self-representation, a public defender, and private counsel compared.
What a PFMA Lawyer Costs
Flat and hourly fees, what Rule 1.5 requires in writing, and what makes a case cost more.
What a PFMA Defense Lawyer Does
The work step by step: release conditions, discovery, investigation, motions, negotiation, trial.
Questions to Ask a PFMA Lawyer
Fourteen questions for a first meeting, and why each one matters.
What to Bring to Your First Meeting
The papers and information a lawyer needs, and what not to do while gathering them.
Should I Just Plead Guilty to PFMA?
The rights a plea gives up, the required sentence, and the firearm and parenting effects.
How Long a PFMA Case Takes
Statutory deadlines, the six-month misdemeanor trial rule, and what slows a case down.
Lawyer for an Order of Protection Hearing
A 20-day timeline, sworn testimony with charges pending, and what a final order can do.
Criminal and Family Cases Together
How a charge, an order of protection, and a parenting case affect each other.
Public Defender vs. Private Lawyer
Who qualifies, how appointment works, what it can cost, and what private counsel adds.
Changing Lawyers Mid-Case
Consent or court order, the rule for public defenders, timing, your file, and fees.
Accused and Also a Victim
Self-defense, the predominant aggressor rule, your own order of protection, and safety.
The Numbers That Run a Montana PFMA Case
These figures come straight from the statutes. The first two apply from the moment of arrest.
| Number | What it governs | MCA |
|---|---|---|
| 72 hours | How long the no contact order served at arrest lasts, unless the first court appearance comes sooner. The judge can then continue or change it. | § 45-5-209(4) |
| 1,500 feet | The largest stay-away distance a no contact order may set around the protected person's location. | § 45-5-209(1) |
| 24 hours | The minimum jail term for a first PFMA conviction. The maximum is 1 year. | § 45-5-206(3)(a)(i) |
| 72 hours | The minimum jail term for a second PFMA conviction. The maximum is 1 year. | § 45-5-206(3)(a)(ii) |
| 30 days | The minimum term for a third or subsequent PFMA conviction. The maximum is 5 years. | § 45-5-206(3)(a)(iv) |
| 40 hours | The minimum counseling a person convicted of PFMA must complete, after a counseling assessment. | § 45-5-206(4) |
| 6 months | The maximum jail term for each violation of a no contact order. Each contact is a separate offense. | § 45-5-209(8) |
Pages for a Specific Charge or Case
The guide above answers questions. These pages cover the charges and family law matters we handle.
Montana Domestic Violence Guide, Common Questions
What is PFMA in Montana?
Is a first PFMA a felony?
Can I contact the other person if they say it is fine?
Do police have to arrest someone on a domestic call?
Is a no contact order the same as an order of protection?
Who wrote this guide?
Charged With PFMA in Western Montana?
The no contact order and the first court date come quickly. Call 406-830-3060 for a confidential consultation with a defense attorney.