A Montana misdemeanor DUI can be finished in a few weeks if it is resolved by an early plea, and it takes several months if the evidence is contested or the case goes to trial. The law fixes only a few points on the calendar. The most important is that a misdemeanor must generally be brought to trial within 6 months after the plea (MCA § 46-13-401(2)). Most other stages are set by the court's schedule and by decisions the two sides make. This page is part of our Montana DUI Guide and puts the stages of the DUI court process on a timeline.
The Deadlines the Law Sets
| Stage | What the law says about timing | MCA |
|---|---|---|
| Arrest to first appearance | "Without unnecessary delay." No number of hours is stated. A person released with a citation appears on the date written on it. | § 46-7-101(1) |
| Refusal suspension petition | 30 days after the officer gives notice of the right to a hearing. Runs separately from the criminal case. | § 61-8-1017(1) |
| Time to enter a plea | On request, a reasonable time of not less than 1 day. | § 46-12-203 |
| Defense disclosures | Within 30 days after arraignment, or later for good cause. | § 46-15-323(2), (6) |
| Omnibus hearing | Within a reasonable time after a not guilty plea, and not less than 30 days before trial. | § 46-13-110(1) |
| Misdemeanor trial | Within 6 months after the plea, unless the defendant postponed the trial or good cause is shown. | § 46-13-401(2) |
| Sentencing | "Without unreasonable delay" after a plea or verdict. | § 46-18-115 |
| Written judgment | Within 30 days after the sentence is pronounced. | § 46-18-116(1) |
| Notice of appeal to district court | Within 10 days after judgment. | § 46-17-311(2) |
Notice how many of these are phrased as "reasonable" or "without delay" and how few are numbers. That is why two DUI cases in two courts can move at very different speeds without either court doing anything wrong.
The First Days
The first appearance comes quickly. If you were held, you must be brought before a judge without unnecessary delay. If you were released, you appear on the date on your paperwork. At the arraignment you may ask for time before pleading, a reasonable time of not less than 1 day (MCA § 46-12-203).
The day you enter a plea is the day the six-month clock starts. The clock does not run from the arrest. Our page on speedy trial deadlines explains how it is counted and how it is lost.
If you refused testing, a second clock began when the officer gave you notice: 30 days to petition the district court over the suspension (MCA § 61-8-1017(1)). That deadline often passes before the criminal case has had its second hearing.
The Pretrial Stretch
Most of the calendar is spent here, and most of it is waiting on three things.
- Evidence. The prosecutor must disclose on request, but the statute sets no day count for the initial disclosure. Reports usually arrive first. Video and laboratory results can take longer. See discovery in a DUI case.
- The omnibus hearing. It must be held within a reasonable time after a not guilty plea and at least 30 days before trial (MCA § 46-13-110(1)). Pretrial issues generally must be raised by then. See the omnibus hearing.
- Motions. A motion to suppress adds written briefs and usually an evidentiary hearing, followed by the judge's ruling. If the State appeals an order suppressing evidence, which it is allowed to do (MCA § 46-20-103(2)(e)), the case pauses for that appeal.
Negotiation runs alongside all of this. Many cases resolve shortly after the evidence is in or after a motion is decided, because that is when both sides know what the case is worth.
Trial and Sentencing
A misdemeanor jury trial must begin within the six-month window unless an exception applies. No statute fixes the length of the trial itself.
After a guilty plea or verdict, the court must hold a sentencing hearing"without unreasonable delay" (MCA § 46-18-115). In misdemeanor cases that is often the same day as a plea. The judge may instead require the chemical dependency assessment to be completed first (MCA § 61-8-1009(2)), which moves sentencing out. The written judgment follows within 30 days of the oral sentence (MCA § 46-18-116(1)).
What Makes a Case Longer or Shorter
Shorter: a breath test, since the result is known the same night. A complete video. An early agreement. A court with open trial dates.
Longer:a blood test that has to be analyzed by a laboratory. A suppression motion. An independent analysis or a defense expert. A continuance by either side. A crash with an injured person, where medical records and a victim's input are part of the case. A prior conviction from another state that has to be verified before the offense number is settled.
One of these is in your control and deserves a warning. If the defense asks to postpone, the six-month protection may no longer apply, because the statute protects only a defendant whose trial has not been postponed on the defendant's own motion. Sometimes more time is exactly what the defense needs. It should be a decision, not a habit.
After the Court Case: Appeal and Sentence
A conviction after trial in a lower court can be appealed by a notice filed within 10 days (MCA § 46-17-311(2)). The lower court then has 30 days to send its record to the district court (MCA § 46-17-311(3)). From a court of record, written briefs follow on a schedule set by court rule. From a court that is not of record, a new trial has to be scheduled. Either way, an appeal adds months. See appealing to district court.
Even with no appeal, the obligations outlast the hearing. The suspended part of a jail sentence may be suspended for up to 1 year pending completion of treatment, and the judge keeps jurisdiction over it for up to 1 year (MCA §§ 61-8-1007(1)(e), 61-8-1009(10)). On a second or later conviction, treatment is followed by monthly monitoring for at least 1 year (MCA § 61-8-1009(9)(a)). The license suspension runs from the date of conviction: 6 months for a first offense and 1 year for a second or third (MCA § 61-5-208(2)(b), (3)(a)).
Felony DUI Runs on a Different Clock
A felony DUI is prosecuted in district court. The six-month statute applies only to misdemeanors. The protection against delay is the constitutional right to a speedy trial, which Montana courts analyze by balancing four factors once the interval between accusation and trial reaches 200 days (State v. Ariegwe, 2007 MT 204, paragraph 107). That number is a trigger for review, not a deadline. A presentence investigation, where the court requests one, adds time between a plea or verdict and sentencing: the report must generally be available within 30 business days (MCA § 46-18-111(1)(a)(ii)).
This page explains Montana procedure in general as of the 2025 Montana Code Annotated. How long your case takes depends on the court, the evidence, and the choices made in it. It is not legal advice about your specific case.