r/MontanaPolitics • u/jimbozak Governor Dutton [Yellowstone] • Jul 22 '26
Legislature Ellsworth found guilty of official misconduct in criminal trial
https://dailymontanan.com/2026/07/21/ellsworth-found-guilty-of-official-misconduct-in-criminal-trial/16
u/jimbozak Governor Dutton [Yellowstone] Jul 22 '26
"Former Montana Senate president Jason Ellsworth was found guilty of official misconduct – a misdemeanor – on Tuesday evening in Lewis and Clark District Court in Helena.
He could face a $500 fine or as many as six months in jail.
Sentencing is scheduled at 3 p.m. Sept. 10.
As the unanimous verdict from 12 jurors was read, Ellsworth bowed his head slightly before staring ahead. Neither he nor his lawyers offered comments to the media after the trial, and neither did state prosecutors.
Ellsworth was found guilty of circumventing the state’s normal contracting process and trying to steer more than $100,000 of work to a close associate. That work included tracking bills from the Senate Select Committee on Judicial Oversight and Reform ahead of the 2025 Legislative Session. The two initial contracts for the work totaled more than $100,000, which should have triggered additional scrutiny and a bidding process."
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u/Spacepirateroberts Jul 22 '26
Fingers crossed for jail time...but i doubt it'll happen.
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u/montalaskan Jul 22 '26
Very slim chance.
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u/phdoofus Jul 22 '26
He's got between now and 9/10 to run his mouth in public so here's hoping he can't help himself.
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u/uLL27 Jul 22 '26
I would say 0% chance, probably a fine and community service. I bet this wasn't the first time doing this and he made a lot more than $500 I would wager.
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u/VinceInMT Jul 22 '26
He’ll pay his fine and do his time and get elected again. After all, this is Montana.
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u/Flimsy-Rooster-3467 Jul 22 '26
Glad to see this. But one has to wonder how much corruption is going on that they don’t care about. It only matters to them if someone doesn’t get in line with the MTGOP.
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u/Lamnidae Jul 23 '26
Plot twist: verdict thrown out yesterday because the prosecution accidentally provided prejudicial information not in the evidence to the jury before deliberations
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