Tag: Council of State Governments Justice Center

Montana Senate Bill 63, The Constitution and The Gestapo

Montana Senate Bill 63 was introduced and passed by the 2017 Legislature by request of The Commission on Sentencing.  Unfortunately, this bill will have a chilling effect on the constitutional rights of all defendants.  If only the creators of this bill knew what they were actually doing, the creators of this bill would be appalled.  The creators of this bill have no idea the underlying use of Senate Bill 63.

Constitution of United States of America 1789 (rev. 1992)

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence.

CONSTITUTION
of the
STATE OF MONTANA
PREAMBLE
We the people of Montana grateful to God for the quiet beauty of our state, the grandeur of our mountains, the vastness of our rolling plains, and desiring to improve the quality of life, equality of opportunity and to secure the blessings of liberty for this and future generations do ordain and establish this constitution.
ARTICLE II
DECLARATION OF RIGHT
Sectn 24. RIGHTS OF THE ACCUSED. In all criminal prosecutions the accused
shall have the right to appear and defend in person and by counsel; to demand the nature and cause of the accusation; to meet the witnesses against him face to face; to have process to compel the attendance of witnesses in his behalf, and a speedy public trial by an impartial jury of the county or district in which the offense is alleged to have been committed, subject to the right of the state to have a change of venue for any of the causes for which the defendant may obtain the same.
The heart of Senate Bill 63 is an act allowing the early termination of remaining portions of deferred or suspended sentences.  In the case of deferred sentencing, the offender can be released from supervision after serving two years or one-half of the sentence, whichever is less.  In the case of a suspended sentence, the offender can be released from supervision after serving 3 years or two-thirds of the time suspended, whichever is less.  Conditional release can be granted as soon as the probationer has completed 9 months. This sounds really good!!  The caveat to this bill is the defendant has to pay all restitution and court-ordered financial obligations in full.  This caveat will be used as a tool to induce defendants to plead guilty or accept a plea bargain rather than exercise their constitutional rights to a trial, wherein they could be found not guilty.  Let me explain how this bill is nothing but a tool for prosecutors. 

A defendant that exercises their constitutional right to a trial will, through the arbitrary decision of the judge or request of the county attorney, be charged for the cost of the trial.  These costs include the time of the county attorney, witness fees and expenses, investigator costs, jury costs, the cost of the judges' time and defense attorney charges and expenses.  This can amount to thousands and thousands of dollars.  The prosecutor comes in like the Gestapo and, with steel-toed boots, uses this Senate Bill to induce the defendant, with provisions of an early release from supervision, to plead guilty and not incur the expenses of paying for a trial. If they request a trial the defendant can never get early release from supervision because they can't pay all court-ordered financial obligations.  The cost of exercising constitutional rights can amount to a lifetime sentence because the county attorney then places liens on all property of the defendant to pay for the trial.  You choose, early release because there are no court-ordered financial obligations or a lifetime of paying court-ordered financial obligations and no chance of early release.  This is the choice offered by Senate Bill 63.

Senate Bill 63 has only provided a tool to prosecutors.  Defendants can exercise their constitutional right to a trial and get a lifetime sentence paying for the cost of the trial.  Or, they can figuratively be kicked with steel-toed Gestapo boots into accepting a plea for early release of supervision as provided by Senate Bill 63 because there are no court-ordered financial obligations.

The creators of this bill have no idea of the underlying use of this bill. The underlying use will be used to induce defendants to plead guilty, waive their constitutional rights and, in many cases, innocent people will be convicted.  All with the promise of early release and no court-ordered financial obligations.

Senate Bill 63 ushers in the Gestapo and disposes of this preamble:
CONSTITUTION
of the
STATE OF MONTANA
PREAMBLE
We the people of Montana grateful to God for the quiet beauty of our state, the grandeur of our mountains, the vastness of our rolling plains, and desiring to improve the quality of life, equality of opportunity and to secure the blessings of liberty for this and future generations do ordain and establish this constitution.

The Real Legacy of Mike Batista and Montana Corrections

Montana’s prisons are over capacity due to an 11 percent increase in the prison population between FY2008-2015.  Mike Batista was the administrator for the Division of Criminal Investigation for the Montana Department of Justice for 20 years before being appointed as director for the Department of Corrections in 2012.  Now Mike Batista is currently named to the Board of Pardons and Parole.  The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.  Let’s look at Batista’s legacy.

During Mike's tenure with the Division of Criminal Investigations, he employed a computer forensic scientist named Jimmy Weg.  Attached is an email obtained from Jimmy Weg.  

seq-2 (1)
click on link

This email is disturbing in so many ways. The email itself testifies to the fact that the "science" of computer forensics is junk science.  Jimmy was asked to help defend a search warrant.  Jimmy clearly says the defense is correct in their assessment of the search warrant. Jimmy says "TRUE" to defense claims. "WE'VE ALL HEARD OF CASES IN WHICH A SIGNAL WAS IN FACT STOLEN LEADING TO A SEARCH OF THE WRONG COMPUTER."  "..[nothing] IS FAIL SAFE."  Under the leadership of Mike Batista, Jimmy Weg continued to knowingly provide false and incomplete "evidence" to ignorant judges who in turn rubber stamped any search warrant request.  Immediately the innocent victim of the "scientific evidence" is turned into a criminal.

Mike Batista employed an investigator, Arlyn Greydanus.  Arlyn's son was a person of interest in a crime and was interviewed by law enforcement.  Mike Batista then authorized Arlyn to transport the evidence from Helena to the Missoula Crime Lab.  WOW!! Talk about evidence handling.  Obviously the son was cleared of any wrong doing.

During Mike's tenure as Director of Montana Department of Corrections, Mike signed a contract with Crossroads Correctional Facility authorizing Crossroads to add extra bunks in cells overcrowding the prison cells.  After authorizing Crossroads Correctional Facility to overcrowd the prison, Mike then asks the State of Montana for millions of dollars to alleviate the overcrowding he authorized.
  
Mike Batista worked with Ron Alsbury, Chief of Probation and Parole, to exponentially revoke and rescind the probation and parole of hundreds of men and women, particularly of American Indian descent.  After this unprecedented number of revocations, Mike Batista asks Montana citizens for millions of dollars to correct the challenges he created.

Mike Batista knowingly allowed search warrant applications based on "evidence" that was questionable at best and according to his own forensic examiner, known to be false.  Judges were not informed in these applications that probable cause was not, in fact, probable cause at all.

Batista allowed his own investigator a clear and probable opportunity to alter evidence in favor of the investigator's son.

Mike Batista signed a contract to authorize the overcrowding of prisons. He worked with Ron Alsbury to revoke and rescind the probation and parole of hundreds of people.  Mike Batista then pretends to be the savior of overcrowded prisons.

Now Batista is serving on the Board of Pardons and Parole deciding the fate of the people he incarcerated.  Many of these people are victims of the "probable cause" search warrants submitted by his investigators under his supervision.

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different outcome.