Montana/Region

US wants to help endangered Yellowstone fish with $57 million dam

Published on Tue, 05/31/2016 - 3:53pm

BILLINGS, Mont. — U.S. officials say building a $57 million concrete dam and fish bypass channel along Montana's Yellowstone River offers the cheapest way to help an endangered species that dates to the time of dinosaurs.

The U.S Army Corps of Engineers and Interior Department are proposing the irrigation dam on the lower Yellowstone near the North Dakota border. That's where aging pallid sturgeon have been trapped for decades downstream of their spawning grounds.

Independent committees provide muscle in legislative races

Published on Fri, 05/27/2016 - 4:29pm
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HELENA, Mont. — Money has been flowing into Montana legislative races at a brisk pace, fueled by political committees seeking to influence the makeup of the Legislature that convenes in January.

With Montana's campaign contribution caps among the lowest in the country for legislative office seekers, political action committees are stepping in to provide some financial muscle — not by contributing directly to campaign coffers but by spending tens of thousands of dollars on their own for mailers and other advertising.

Inmate escapes Montana Women's Prison in Billings

Published on Fri, 05/27/2016 - 4:23pm

BILLINGS, Mont.— An inmate serving time for drug possession and for walking away from a prerelease center has escaped from the Montana Women's Prison in Billings.

Associate Warden Bob Paul says 26-year-old Christina Becker was assigned to the garden maintenance crew and apparently escaped over the perimeter fence at about 10:30 a.m. Friday.

Police looking for men who robbed casino, took hostages

Published on Fri, 05/27/2016 - 4:21pm

MISSOULA, Mont. — Law enforcement officers are searching for two men who reportedly robbed a Missoula casino, took a family hostage and fired shots at pursuing officers before finally freeing the uninjured hostages at separate locations.

Missoula County Sheriff T.J. McDermott said the men robbed Deano's Casino at about 3:30 a.m. Friday, carjacked a family from Lake Stevens, Washington, and sped through downtown Missoula.

Man convicted in tribal corruption case charged with escape

Published on Fri, 05/27/2016 - 4:16pm
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HELENA, Mont.— A man who was convicted of defrauding a Montana Indian tribe now faces an escape charge after prosecutors say he fled from a minimum-security prison last fall, then was re-captured after crashing a stolen vehicle during a high-speed chase.

Coal terminal hearing in Spokane draws hundreds

Published on Fri, 05/27/2016 - 4:09pm

SPOKANE, Wash. — Hundreds of people packed into a convention center in Spokane to give their opinion on a proposed coal export terminal that would bring more than a dozen additional trains through the city every day.

KXLY-TV reports (http://bit.ly/1qP91x2 ) that the terminal proposed near Longview would allow the state to ship coal to Asia. It would also mean 16 additional coal trains going through Spokane daily on their way to or from Montana, Wyoming and other states.

Mudslide slogs travel on key route in Glacier National Park

Published on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 4:13pm
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WEST GLACIER, Mont. — For tourists trying to get to some sights in Glacier National Park, it's been a dam inconvenience.

Travel along part of a popular route through the Montana landmark was limited for the fourth straight day Thursday after heavy rains caused a large beaver dam to fail and wash debris down a hillside early Wednesday, rangers said.

Trump backed by US Rep. Zinke on eve of Montana rally

Published on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 4:10pm
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BILLINGS, Mont. — Rep. Ryan Zinke on Wednesday became the most prominent Montana Republican to endorse Donald Trump — one day before the presumptive nominee for the Republican presidential nomination arrives to rally supporters in the Treasure State.

Amid speculation about who Trump will enlist as part of his administration, Zinke, a former U.S. Navy SEAL officer, has said he would serve under Trump if called upon — perhaps as the New York businessman's vice presidential pick or as secretary of defense.

Man sentenced to prison for shooting grizzly bear in Montana

Published on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 4:08pm

HELENA, Mont. — A magistrate judge has sentenced a Washington state man to six months in prison for shooting and killing a grizzly bear in northwestern Montana last year.

Shalako Katzer of Mead and federal prosecutors previously reached a deal that called for a sentence of a year of unsupervised probation in exchange for a guilty plea to unlawful taking of a threatened species.

Kalispell students barred from commencement after vandalism

Published on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 4:07pm

KALISPELL, Mont. — Twenty Kalispell students have been barred from participating in their high school graduation ceremony in connection with a break-in and vandalism at the school.

The Daily Inter Lake reports that Kalispell Public Schools trustees voted 8-3 in favor of the decision Tuesday after the 21 Flathead High School students involved, including one junior, were invited to go before the board.

The trustees who voted against the decision had argued that not all students played equal roles in the vandalism.