Research: Western Montana by the Numbers
Studies and statistics on family court filings and road crashes in Missoula, Ravalli and Lake counties, built from Montana and federal public data. Every figure names its source and the period it covers, and the data behind each page is free to download.
By A&M Law · Updated November 12, 2026
Data studies
Data study
1,140
domestic relations cases in Missoula County District Court in 2025 (1,171 in 2024)
Divorce and Family Cases in Missoula County Courts, 2015 to 2025
Missoula County District Court logged 1,140 new and reopened domestic relations cases in 2025, 19% below 2016. County data, 2015 to 2025.
Read the study →Data study
37%
of Missoula County fatal crashes, 2016 to 2025, involved a driver suspected of alcohol or drug use (53 of 144)
Impaired-Driving Crashes in Missoula County, 2016 to 2025
Police suspected alcohol or drugs in 1,940 Missoula County crashes from 2016 to 2025, and in 37% of fatal ones. When and who, by MDT data.
Read the study →Data study
52%
of Missoula County crashes in December to February, 2016 to 2025, happened on icy, snowy or slushy roads
Winter Crashes on Missoula-Area Roads, 2016 to 2025
5,013 Missoula County crashes from 2016 to 2025 happened on icy, snowy or slushy roads, 52% of crashes in Dec to Feb. MDT data by month.
Read the study →Statistics
How we work
- We use public data only: the Montana Judicial Branch, the Montana Department of Transportation, NHTSA and the Census Bureau.
- Every number on a page is computed by a script from the source files, and a second, separate script re-checks the headline figures against another file or service from the same agency.
- Each page says what the data can and cannot show. Where counts are small, we say so.
- No page describes any individual case, client or person.
Using our data
Reporters, researchers and community groups are welcome to use these figures and the CSV files below, with credit to A&M Law and a link to the page, under a CC BY 4.0 license. Questions or corrections: call 406-830-3060 or use the contact page.
- Missoula County family court filings: Domestic relations, paternity and adoption cases by county and year, 2015 to 2025 (CSV)
- Missoula County impaired-driving crashes: Crashes with suspected impairment by county and year, 2016 to 2025 (CSV)
- Winter crashes on Missoula-area roads: Crashes by road surface, county, year and month, 2016 to 2025 (CSV)
- Montana family law, DUI and crash statistics: All figures on this page, by measure, area and period (CSV)
Sources used in our research
- Montana Judicial Branch: Montana District Courts New Case Filings and Reopened Cases (yearly tables) (2015 to 2025)
- Montana Judicial Branch: Montana District Courts 2025 New Case Filings and Reopened Cases (2025, with 2024 totals)
- Montana Judicial Branch: 2025 District Court Case Filing Review (2016 to 2025, by judicial district)
- Montana Judicial Branch: Statewide Case Processing Measures, Jan-Dec 2025 (2025)
- Montana Judicial Branch: Definitions of Montana District Court Case Types (May 2010)
- Montana Courts Electronic Filing: Court Policy (case types and subtypes) (as of October 13, 2026)
- U.S. Census Bureau: County Population Totals, Vintage 2025 (July 1, 2020 to 2025; July 1, 2025)
- U.S. Census Bureau: County Intercensal Estimates, 2010 to 2020 (July 1, 2015 to 2019)
- Montana Department of Transportation: Crash Data (crash, person and vehicle tables) (2016 to 2025, extract updated October 8, 2026)
- NHTSA: Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) national files (2016 to 2024 (2024 preliminary))
- Montana Department of Transportation: public crash information map service (2016 to 2025)
- Montana Judicial Branch: Montana District Courts 2024 New Case Filings and Reopened Cases (2024)
- Montana Judicial Branch: Courts of Limited Jurisdiction, Civil Violations Filed, Calendar Year 2025 (2025)
- U.S. Census Bureau: American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B12001 (marital status) (2020 to 2024)
These pages report public data and are general information, not legal advice.
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