What happens now that you’ve changed your plea or have been found guilty at trial?

Justice of the Peace Beal has ordered you to complete a counseling assessment prior to sentencing. If you choose to be assessed by one of the Court’s pre-approved counselors, the counseling assessment costs $150 (if you are paying out of pocket), and payment is due at the time of the assessment. You can also provide your insurance information.

• If you have Medicaid, the cost should be completely covered.
• If you have private insurance and have not met your deductible, you may wish to pay out of pocket, as the assessment is billed at the rate of $190 with insurance.

The court coordinator will contact you to complete a referral for the counseling assessment. Per statute, the Court provides the counselor with the law enforcement report from the incident. The Court also provides information about your criminal history. Additionally, court documents from other cases may be provided as collateral information. The counselor who will do the assessment will contact you to set a time to accomplish the assessment. This assessment must happen before your sentencing hearing, unless otherwise indicated. The judge will use the information from the assessment to determine what your next steps will be regarding counseling or other treatment requirements. If you fail to attend an appointment you have set with the counselor doing the assessment, you may be charged a $50 no-show fee, in addition to the cost of a rescheduled appointment.

During the counseling assessment, the counselor may ask you questions about the incident that led to your involvement with the justice system. You can tell the counselor what you remember about the incident. You have already changed your plea or have been found guilty at trial, so your disclosures will not affect whether you will be convicted. You may talk to your attorney prior to the assessment about what you would like to share with the counselor.

At sentencing, the judge will tell you what you need to do next. After the hearing, you will receive a written court order that will outline what you need to do, as well. Suspended jail time does not have to be served if you complete the required treatment and follow the conditions of your sentence. If you do not complete treatment or you do not complete it within a certain time period, the judge may reimpose jail time. The court will monitor your progress as you move through your programs. It is important to show that you are making progress and putting in effort.

Between four and six weeks after your sentencing hearing, the Court will order you to appear to check on your progress completing what you were ordered to do. You will be notified of that hearing date at your sentencing hearing, or you will receive an Order to Appear in the mail and/or by email. You must attend that hearing in person.

Please reach out the Court Coordinator (Rebecca) at 406-880-5556 if you are facing issues getting connected with community programs providers. 

The Court wants to see you successfully make it through programming and move forward.

We hope that you will find participation in group classes meaningful and that you will build connections with your fellow participants and facilitators. Your active participation will help you reflect on the occurrences that brought you to court, and we hope you will benefit from looking inward and focusing on the future.

What does the court expect from you as you move through this process?

1. Enter into the process with an open mind. The court does not expect you to be dishonest about what you believe. In fact, please be honest (as long as you do so in a respectful manner and at appropriate times).
2. Know that the details of what you share in class are NOT communicated to the court. What you say in group will not be used against you in your current court proceeding (as long as you are following your Contract for Participation).
3. If you have committed to attending a group class, the court expects you to follow through. Unless there is a very good reason and a request made to the court for your withdrawal from classes, there may be court-related consequences for dropping a class.
4. The court expects you to follow all agreements in your Contract for Participation. If you are dismissed from a group class, there will be a court sanction. The court respects all decisions facilitators make about participant removal from group.
5. If you are asked to leave class at any point, you will need to restart the group process. Participants cannot receive partial credit.
6. If you have unexcused absences, there will be a discussion about consequences at your next Review Hearing, if not earlier.
7. If you were ordered to specifically complete a group class, remember that this is the judge’s decision. You should expect that what you say to facilitators about the judge’s court orders (and your willingness to complete court orders) may be relayed to the judge and may be addressed in court. Again, the court asks you to enter into the class with an open mind and to engage with the material.

After sentencing, Justice Court will require you to attend Review Hearings. The date of your first Review Hearing time was likely on your sentencing order. If not, you will receive a notice in the mail and/or email.

These hearings are times for you to check in with the Court about your progress. We want to make sure you’re going in the right direction so that you don’t waste time and money on programs that aren’t court-approved or helpful to you. The court coordinator (Rebecca) is available to provide referrals and help overcome barriers if you’re having trouble getting started. Additionally, the Court will discuss whether conditions of your sentence are being followed and decide if changes need to be made.

You are REQUIRED to appear IN PERSON for these hearings unless told otherwise.

Judge Beal, the court coordinator, a prosecutor, a defense attorney, and a misdemeanor probation officer usually attend these hearings.

If you have documentation of classes, treatment, or other services you are engaged with but haven’t already provided to Court, please bring that documentation with you to court. An even better idea would be to reach out to the coordinator prior to your next court hearing.

Remain in the courtroom until the judge tells you that you are allowed to leave. You may be required to remain in court after your case to observe other cases or to meet with the court coordinator after the hearing.

At these hearings, the Court looks forward to hearing about the work you’re putting into addressing what brought you to court. Thank you in advance for participating and sharing what you’ve learned.

You can call or text Rebecca at 406-880-5556 or email her at rcalabrese@missoulacounty.us.