How to Read a Montana DUI Citation

A Montana DUI citation tells you four things: who is accused, what statute the officer says was violated, which court will hear the case, and when you must appear. The statute number is the part most people skip, and it is the part that tells you how the State intends to prove the charge. This page is part of our Montana DUI Guide.

The Papers You May Be Holding

• Citation or notice to appear. A written direction issued by a peace officer that requests a person to appear before a court at a stated time and place to answer a charge (MCA § 46-1-202). In many misdemeanor cases the same form serves as the complaint once it is filed with the court.
• Complaint. The charging document. A charge is a written statement, presented to a court, that accuses a person of an offense (MCA § 46-1-202). You must be given a copy before you are asked to plead (MCA § 46-12-201(1)).
• Release order or bail receipt. The conditions you are released on, and proof of any bail posted. See bail and release conditions.
• Temporary driving permit and notice of suspension. Only if you refused a test. See the temporary driving permit.

What a Notice to Appear Must Contain

When an officer could arrest without a warrant, the officer may issue a notice to appear instead. By statute the notice must be in writing, state the person's name and address if known, set forth the nature of the offense, be signed by the issuing officer, direct the person to appear before a court at a certain time and place, and state that failure to appear may result in the suspension of the person's driver's license (MCA § 46-6-310(2)).

People are sometimes surprised to be both arrested and handed a citation. In a DUI the two often go together: the person is taken into custody for testing and booking, and leaves with a document that sets the charge and the court date.

The Charge Line: Statute Numbers Decoded

A charge must name the offense, say whether it is a misdemeanor or a felony, and state the citation of the statute the person is alleged to have violated (MCA § 46-11-401(1)). On a DUI that citation is a subsection of § 61-8-1002:

The distinction has consequences. On a first offense, an impairment conviction under (1)(a) carries a minimum of 24 consecutive hours in jail, while a first per se conviction under (1)(b), (c), (d), or (f) has a maximum but no minimum jail term (MCA § 61-8-1007(1)(a)(i), (2)(a)(i)). Our pages on per se and impairment DUI and Montana's legal limits explain the difference in proof.

Three more things to look for on this line:

• Two DUI subsections. The same acts may be prosecuted under more than one subsection, but only one conviction can result (MCA § 61-8-1002(6)).
• A city ordinance number. Municipalities are authorized to enact the DUI statute as an ordinance (MCA § 61-8-1002(4)), so a city citation may cite the city code instead of, or along with, the state statute.
• Other tickets. A DUI stop often produces separate citations for the driving that led to the stop or for an open container. Each is its own charge with its own line, and each needs an answer in court.

Misdemeanor or Felony

The charge must say which it is. A first, second, or third DUI is a misdemeanor sentenced under § 61-8-1007. A fourth or later is a felony under § 61-8-1008 and is prosecuted in district court. If your paperwork says felony, or you were told you would appear in district court, read our felony DUI page. The offense number on the citation reflects what the officer knew at the roadside. Prosecutors check prior records afterward, and the charge can be amended.

Which Court, and When

The charge must specify the court in which it is filed (MCA § 46-11-401(1)), and the notice gives the time and place to appear. In Missoula, a citation written by city police generally goes to Missoula Municipal Court, and one written by the Sheriff's Office or the Montana Highway Patrol generally goes to Missoula County Justice Court. Other Montana cities and counties divide cases between city and justice courts in a similar way. Go by what the citation says, and if it is unclear, call the clerk of the court named on it.

Some citations give a specific date and time. Others direct you to appear on or before a date, or within a set number of days. Read the wording closely. Our page on the arraignment explains what happens at that first hearing.

Mistakes on the Citation

Misspelled names, a wrong vehicle color, or a transposed digit in a license number are common, and they rarely end a case. A charge may not be dismissed for a formal defect that does not tend to prejudice a substantial right of the defendant (MCA § 46-11-401(6)). The errors that matter are substantive ones: a time or place that cannot be right, a charge that does not match what happened, or facts in the citation that conflict with the officer's later report. Do not point them out to the officer or the prosecutor yourself. Show them to your lawyer, because an inconsistency is most useful when the defense decides how to use it.

What the Citation Does Not Tell You

The citation is the State's opening statement, not its evidence. It does not show why you were stopped, how the field tests were scored, whether the breath instrument was properly certified, or what the video shows. Those come from the reports and recordings your attorney requests. It also says nothing about your driver's license unless you refused a test, and a refusal has its own notice and its own 30-day deadline in a different court (MCA § 61-8-1017(1)).

This page explains Montana law in general as of the 2025 Montana Code Annotated. Citation forms differ by agency and court. It is not legal advice about your specific case.