[news]
News in review
From the election to the Griz, a look at 2012’s top stories by Matthew Frank, Jessica Mayrer, Skylar Browning and Alex Sakariassen
Buying your vote
closest race, however, was for Superintendent of Public Instruction. Democratic incumbent Denise Juneau beat Republican challenger Sandy Welch by a mere 2,231 votes. Republicans retained control of both chambers of the Montana Legislature, but their power will be kept in check during the upcoming session with Bullock (figuratively, if not literally) inheriting Gov. Brian Schweitzer’s veto branding iron.
Athlete Conduct Code and a series of community forums hosted by Engstrom, The 2012 election was all about but it did little to stop the blitz of bad money. Even in Montana, voters found news. themselves inundated with messages paid The U.S. Department of Justice, the for by third-party groups backed by deepNational Collegiate Athletic Association pocketed donors. Nowhere was this outand the Department of Education all side influence more prevalent than in the opened investigations, and the national contentious Senate race between Demomedia turned to Missoula for stories of crat Jon Tester and Republican Denny Rehow a bucolic college town had lost conhberg. That race alone saw more than $30 trol. The New York Times and Gawker million in spending, much of it by somedia’s Jezebel blog filed two of called “dark money” groups that the more notable accounts, with masked their donors by hiding bethe latter titled, “My Weekend in hind 501(c)(4) status. Karl Rove’s America’s So-Called Rape CapiCrossroads GPS directed millions at tal.” attack ads painting Tester as Engstrom decided in March “Obama Lite,” while groups like the not to renew the contracts of athLeague of Conservation Voters tarletic director Jim O’Day and head geted Rehberg as an out-of-touch football coach Robin Pflugrad. Washington hack. Tester won in the Former assistant coach Mick Deend, but nationwide, more than laney came out of a short-lived retwo-thirds of the 629 outside tirement to assume head groups who spent heavy in 2012 coaching duties and, after a nabacked losing candidates. One of tional search, Kent Haslam, UM’s the highest among them was the associate athletic director during U.S. Chamber of Commerce. the ongoing controversy, was The Colorado-based nonprofit promoted to athletic director. American Tradition Partnership Perhaps the most notable wasn’t particularly active on the change was an entire season withcampaign front this year. But the out a new sexual assault charge. group made headway on a far larger Photo by Chad Harder In fact, the now annual in-season agenda: chipping away at Mon- After federal authorities last year raided dozens of player arrest looked quaint by tana’s campaign finance laws. ATP caregivers who believed they were lawfully opercomparison: Missoula Drug Task succeeded in getting the U.S. ating under the state’s medical marijuana law, the Force officers charged offensive caregivers spent much of 2012 battling the charges. Supreme Court to strike down tackle Trevor Poole with purchasMontana’s 100-year-old Corrupt ing Ecstasy while attending a Halloween Practices Act this summer, and later conrave called the Disco Bloodbath. vinced a judge to eliminate the state’s Griz gone wild campaign contributions limits for statewide and local races. The latter decision only stood for six days, but in that time the state GOP managed to donate $500,000 to gubernatorial candidate Rick Hill’s campaign. A ProPublica report published this fall also linked ATP to potential illegal campaign coordination activities in the 2008 and 2010 Montana elections. The suspicions stemmed from a box of ATP documents found in a meth house in Colorado. The extent of ATP’s campaign activity is still coming to light. Montana’s election brought about a host of new faces in high offices. Now-former Attorney General Steve Bullock, a Democrat, edged out Hill in the state’s gubernatorial race. Bozeman conservative Steve Daines defeated state Rep. Kim Gillan, a Billings Democrat, for the U.S. House seat Rehberg vacated in his bid to oust Tester. Republicans also claimed the Office of Attorney General when Tim Fox trounced Helena attorney Pam Bucy. The
[8] Missoula Independent • December 27 – January 3, 2013
The Montana Grizzlies ended the 2012 season by missing the playoffs for the second time in the last three years, falling to Montana State and finishing a lackluster 5-6. It marked the program’s first losing season since 1985, but the more notable losses continued to happen off the field. After reports of sexual assault involving members of the football team—including starting quarterback Jordan Johnson—and concerns over how those reports were handled by the administration, the University of Montana spent much of the year desperately trying to shake its sudden shift in reputation from “Griz Nation” to “Rape Nation.” In January, President Royce Engstrom released an investigation report by former state Supreme Court Justice Diane Barz that stated, “UM has a problem of sexual assault on and off campus and needs to take steps to address it …” Barz’s findings led to the implementation of a new Student-
Cannabis in the courts For Montana’s medical marijuana industry, the year was one of confusion, court appearances and ceaseless legal wrangling. After federal authorities raided dozens of caregivers who believed they were lawfully operating under the state’s medical marijuana law in 2011, the caregivers spent much of 2012 battling the charges. Most former caregivers pleaded guilty and hoped for leniency, but Montana Cannabis partner Chris Williams refused to admit wrongdoing. In September, he pleaded not guilty in federal court to eight felony drug and weapons charges. In the days leading up to his scheduled Jan. 4 sentencing, Williams faced more than 80 years in prison. Then, on Dec. 18, something extraordinary happened. Williams and the U.S. Department of Justice signed off on a post-conviction plea agreement. The highly unusual, if not unprecedented,