Justice Committee Adds Animal Hoarding to Meeting Agenda
The Law and Justice Interim Committee of the Montana Legislature will meet in Helena next week to learn more about DUI laws, the preservation and storage of biological crime-scene evidence, and animal hoarding.
The committee will meet Monday and Tuesday at 8 a.m. in Room 137 of the State Capitol. The public is invited to attend and will have an opportunity to comment on issues under the committee's jurisdiction.
Several speakers have been invited to present information to the committee, including Jim Lynch, director of the state Department of Transportation, who will provide an overview of existing DUI prevention programs, and state Attorney General Steve Bullock, who will set the stage for discussion of DUI laws and their enforcement.
Law enforcement officials also will be part of a panel discussion on DNA evidence.
A panel discussion on animal hoarding will include city, county, and Humane Society officials, as well as a psychologist who will speak to the mental health issues faced by people who keep large numbers of animals as pets without the ability to properly care for them.
The committee also will discuss the Montana Enhanced Registration and Licensing Information Network, or MERLIN, and receive an update on implementation of bills enacted during the 2009 legislative session to divert people with mental illness from the justice system.
The committee has decided to focus primarily on a study of DUI laws during the interim between the 2009 and 2011 sessions, with an eye toward possible legislation to improve those laws. Members are expected to decide next week whether to continue studying animal hoarding throughout the interim.
For more information, including a complete agenda, visit the committee Web page at www.leg.mt.gov/ljic or contact Sheri Heffelfinger, committee research analyst, at 406-444-3596.
The meeting will be broadcast live on the legislative Web site and over TVMT, the state public access television network. To determine the channel in your area, visit www.leg.mt.gov/tvmt or contact the Legislative Information Office at 406-444-2957.
