Montana Disorderly Conduct and Trespass Laws: Penalties (2026)

In Montana, disorderly conduct is knowingly disturbing the peace in one of nine ways listed in Montana Code Annotated (MCA) 45-8-101, such as fighting, making loud or unusual noises, or using threatening, profane or abusive language. The statute sets its own penalty: a fine of up to $100, up to 10 days in the county jail, or both, except that a false report of an impending explosion carries up to $1,000, up to 1 year in the county jail, or both. A threat or false report of a pending fire, explosion or disaster that would endanger life or property is also the felony of intimidation under MCA 45-5-203(2), up to 10 years in state prison, a fine of up to $50,000, or both.

Criminal trespass to property (MCA 45-6-203) has no degrees. It is a single offense punishable by a fine of up to $500, up to 6 months in the county jail, or both. The trespass felony is trespass on a fenced or posted critical infrastructure facility with intent to damage it or impede its operations (MCA 82-1-602). For other states, see our guide to disorderly conduct and trespass laws by state.

Information last verified on 2026-10-18. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers Montana's state statutes on disorderly conduct (MCA 45-8-101), related public-order offenses in Title 45, chapter 8 and a few other titles, and criminal trespass (Title 45, chapter 6, part 2, plus the critical infrastructure and hunting trespass statutes). It does not cover local noise ordinances and quiet hours (see Montana noise laws), the civil process for removing occupants (see Montana squatters' rights), use of force against an intruder (see Montana self-defense laws), city or county ordinances, civil trespass lawsuits, or federal property rules.

What counts as disorderly conduct in Montana

Under MCA 45-8-101(1), "A person commits the offense of disorderly conduct if the person knowingly disturbs the peace by" doing any of the following:

• (a) "quarreling, challenging to fight, or fighting";
• (b) "making loud or unusual noises";
• (c) "using threatening, profane, or abusive language";
• (d) "rendering vehicular or pedestrian traffic impassable";
• (e) "rendering the free ingress or egress to public or private places impassable";
• (f) "disturbing or disrupting any lawful assembly or public meeting";
• (g) "transmitting a false report or warning of a fire or other catastrophe in a place where its occurrence would endanger human life";
• (h) "creating a hazardous or physically offensive condition by any act that serves no legitimate purpose"; or
• (i) "transmitting a false report or warning of an impending explosion in a place where its occurrence would endanger human life."

Two parts of the wording do the work. The mental state is "knowingly," and every form requires that the person "disturbs the peace" by the listed act. Montana has no separate breach of the peace or disturbing the peace crime in Title 45, chapter 8; disturbing the peace is the element of 45-8-101, not an offense of its own.

The noise clause, (1)(b), is one line of the statute. Quiet hours and decibel limits are a separate subject; see Montana noise laws.

Penalty for disorderly conduct

MCA 45-8-101 names no offense class. It sets the sentence itself:

• Forms (a) through (h): a fine "not to exceed $100" or county jail "for a term not to exceed 10 days, or both" (45-8-101(2)).
• Form (i), a false explosion report: a fine "not to exceed $1,000" or county jail "for a term not to exceed 1 year, or both" (45-8-101(3)).

Because the sentence is county jail or a fine, both forms fall within the code's definition of a misdemeanor, "an offense for which the sentence imposed upon conviction is imprisonment in the county jail for a term or a fine, or both" (MCA 45-2-101(42)). Section 45-8-101 contains no felony form and no repeat-offender step-up. Separately, MCA 45-5-203(2) makes it the offense of intimidation to knowingly communicate "a threat or false report of a pending fire, explosion, or disaster that would endanger life or property," punishable by up to 10 years in state prison, a fine of up to $50,000, or both (45-5-203(3)).

Swearing, yelling and being drunk in public

Profane or abusive language and loud noises are listed forms, but each counts only when the person "knowingly disturbs the peace" by it. The statute's words are the whole rule on this page; how a court applies them to particular speech depends on the facts.

Public intoxication is not a crime in Montana. MCA 53-24-107(1) provides that a person who appears intoxicated in public "does not commit a criminal offense solely by reason of being in an intoxicated condition but may be detained by a peace officer for the person's own protection," and subsection (3) adds that no record may be made indicating the person was arrested or charged with a crime. That protection is limited to intoxication itself: the words are "solely by reason of being in an intoxicated condition."

Related public-order offenses

Among the other offenses in Title 45, chapter 8 and nearby titles are these:

• Failure to disperse (45-8-102). When people are engaged in disorderly conduct, "a peace officer, judge, or mayor may order the participants to disperse." Purposely refusing or knowingly failing to obey is punishable by a fine of up to $100, up to 1 day in the county jail, or both.
• Riot (45-8-103). Purposely and knowingly disturbing the peace by an act or threat of violence "as part of an assemblage of five or more persons," where the act or threat presents a clear and present danger of, or results in, property damage or injury. Up to $500, up to 6 months in the county jail, or both; riot by an act of violence while incarcerated in a state adult correctional facility or a city or county jail carries 1 to 5 years.
• Incitement to riot (45-8-104). Conduct that urges others to riot, not including "the mere oral or written advocacy of ideas or expression of belief that does not urge the commission of an act of immediate violence." Up to $500, up to 6 months, or both; 1 to 5 years if committed while incarcerated at a state adult correctional facility.
• Criminal incitement (45-8-105). Advocating a criminal offense where the advocacy is directed to, and likely to produce, imminent unlawful action. Up to 10 years in state prison.
• Bringing armed individuals into the state (45-8-106) for criminal or socially disruptive activities. Up to 10 years, up to $50,000, or both.
• Civil disorder training (45-8-109). Assembling to train in techniques capable of causing damage, injury or death for use in a civil disorder is a felony, up to 10 years, up to $50,000, or both. The section lists exceptions, including acts protected by Article II of the Montana constitution, training in nonviolent civil disobedience, self-defense instruction and firearms training.
• Obstructing health care facility access (45-8-110). Knowingly blocking entry to or exit from a health care facility, including approaching within 8 feet of a non-consenting person who is within 36 feet of an entrance to hand out information, display a sign or protest. Fine of up to $100.
• Public nuisance (45-8-111). Knowingly creating, conducting or maintaining a public nuisance. The definition now provides that "camping in violation of an ordinance or statute constitutes a public nuisance." Fine of up to $500, and "Each day of the conduct constitutes a separate offense."
• Funeral picketing (45-8-116). Knowingly picketing "within 1,500 feet of any property boundary entrance to or exit from a funeral site" from 1 hour before the scheduled start until 1 hour after the services end. A fine of $250 to $1,000, up to 12 months in the county jail, or both; a district court may also enjoin the conduct and award civil damages.
• Predatory loitering (45-8-221). The only loitering offense in chapter 8. It applies to a person previously convicted of a predatory sexual offense or sexual abuse of children who loiters near listed places after being asked to leave by a person in authority. Up to $500, up to 6 months, or both; a second or later offense up to $1,000, up to 1 year, or both.
• False reports to peace officers (45-7-205). Knowingly giving false information to a peace officer with the purpose to implicate another, reporting an offense or incident knowing it did not occur, or pretending to have information about one. Up to 6 months in the county jail, up to $500, or both if the crime falsely reported was a misdemeanor; up to 4 years in state prison, up to $10,000, or both if it was a felony.
• Disturbance of school (20-1-206). Willfully disturbing any school or school meeting is a misdemeanor with a fine of $10 to $100.

Title 45, chapter 8, part 1 contains no general adult loitering, curfew or panhandling offense, and the false-alarm offenses in that part are the fire, catastrophe and explosion reports inside 45-8-101 and the false emergency-call pretext in 45-8-114(3) (up to 10 days, up to $25, or both). Title 10, chapter 3, parts 1, 3 and 4 (emergency powers) contain no offense for violating an emergency or curfew order. Outside the criminal code, MCA 7-32-2302 lets a county adopt a curfew ordinance for minors, which may not extend into an incorporated city or town; violating one is an absolute liability offense punishable by a fine of up to $75, up to 10 hours of community service, or both.

Criminal trespass in Montana

The offense and its penalty

MCA 45-6-203(1) provides that a person commits criminal trespass to property if the person knowingly "(a) enters or remains unlawfully in an occupied structure; or (b) enters or remains unlawfully in or upon the premises of another." The penalty is a fine of up to $500, up to 6 months in the county jail, or both (45-6-203(2)). There are no degrees and no step-up for a dwelling or a repeat offense in part 2 of chapter 6.

The offense applies "Except as provided in 15-7-139, 70-16-111, 76-13-116, and subsection (4) of this section." Subsection (4) provides that it is not criminal trespass for a person who lacks proof of vaccination, or who does not wear a mask or other medical device, to enter or remain in a taxpayer-funded public place that requires one.

An "occupied structure" is any building, vehicle or other place suitable for human occupancy, night lodging or business, "whether or not a person is actually present" (45-2-101(47)). "Premises" includes "any type of structure or building and real property" (45-2-101(60)).

When you are told to leave, and what counts as notice

The definition of "enter or remain unlawfully" in MCA 45-6-201(1) controls both questions. A person enters or remains unlawfully when not "licensed, invited, or otherwise privileged to do so." Privilege to enter land is extended "either by the explicit permission of the landowner or other authorized person or by the failure of the landowner or other authorized person to post notice denying entry onto private land." The privilege "may be revoked at any time by personal communication of notice by the landowner or other authorized person to the entering person." Entry onto private land from adjacent state lands is treated differently; see 77-1-806 under special trespass offenses below.

For posting private land that the public has no right-of-way through, 45-6-201(2) requires:

"notice must be placed on a post, structure, or natural object by marking it with written notice or with not less than 50 square inches of fluorescent orange paint, except that when metal fenceposts are used, the entire post must be painted"

The notice must be placed "at each outer gate and normal point of access to the property, including both sides of a water body crossing the property wherever the water body intersects an outer boundary line."

Where an unfenced public road runs through or along private land, 45-6-201(3) calls for either a conspicuous sign no closer than 30 feet to the road's centerline stating words substantially similar to "PRIVATE PROPERTY, NO TRESPASSING OFF ROAD NEXT ___ MILES," or orange or written notice at intervals of not less than one-fourth mile, with no orange markings on posts where the road enters the land. Land posted in substantial compliance "is considered closed to public access unless explicit permission to enter is given" (45-6-201(4)).

Montana's posting statute uses fluorescent orange paint; chapter 6, part 2 and the related wildlife, state-land and infrastructure sections contain no purple paint provision.

Hunting, fishing and trespass

A trespass conviction or bond forfeiture carries an added consequence when the trespass is on property owned or administered by the Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, or on any property while the person is hunting, fishing, trapping, or collecting antlers, antler sheds or animal horns. In those cases, the person "must be subject to revocation of the person's privilege to hunt, fish, or trap in this state for up to 24 months" (45-6-203(3), as amended by House Bill 354, Chapter 446, Laws of 2025).

Separately, MCA 87-6-415 makes it an offense to hunt on private property without the permission of the landowner, lessee or their agents, and "hunt" includes entering private land to retrieve wildlife or to reach public land to hunt. A first offense carries a fine of $135 to $500. A second or later offense within 5 years carries $500 to $1,000 and forfeiture of hunting, fishing and trapping privileges for 12 months to 3 years.

Special trespass offenses

• Criminal trespass to vehicles (45-6-202). Purposely or knowingly, and without authority, entering any vehicle or part of one. Up to $500, up to 6 months, or both.
• Critical infrastructure (82-1-602). Subject to an exception in 82-1-604, purposely or knowingly trespassing on property containing a critical infrastructure facility that is completely enclosed by a fence or barrier "obviously designed to exclude intruders," or clearly marked with signs forbidding entry without authorization, with intent to damage, destroy, vandalize, deface, tamper with equipment, or materially impede or inhibit operations, is a felony punishable by up to $4,500, up to 18 months, or both. The listed facilities in 82-1-601 include refineries, electric generating facilities and substations, water and wastewater plants, and railroad switching yards and tracks. Damaging such equipment is a misdemeanor (up to 6 months, up to $500, or both, plus restitution) when the damage is under $1,500 and a felony (up to 30 years, up to $150,000, or both) when it is over $1,500.
• Drone trespass (45-6-210). Knowingly causing an unmanned aerial vehicle to fly 200 feet or lower over another person's property or residence without authorization, subject to listed exceptions, carries a $500 fine. See Montana drone laws.
• Entering private land from state lands (77-1-806). A recreational user of state lands must get the lessee's or agent's permission before entering the lessee's adjacent private property. Entering private property from adjacent state lands without the landowner's or agent's permission is an absolute liability misdemeanor, $50 to $500, up to 6 months in the county jail, or both, "regardless of the absence of fencing or failure to post a notice in accordance with 45-6-201."
• Illegal posting of state or federal land (45-8-115). Knowingly posting government land without authorization to restrict access. Up to $500, up to 6 months, or both.

Trespass, burglary and squatting

Trespass becomes burglary when a person knowingly enters or remains unlawfully in an occupied structure and has the purpose to commit an offense there, or knowingly or purposely commits another offense inside; burglary carries up to 20 years, up to $50,000, or both (45-6-204).

Montana added unlawful squatting in 2025. Under MCA 45-6-206, a person commits the offense by knowingly, without the consent of the owner, rightful occupant or an authorized representative, entering the premises of another "and" residing there "for any period of time." It is a misdemeanor, and in addition to the penalties in 46-18-212 (up to 6 months in the county jail, up to $500, or both), the person must be ordered to pay restitution equal to fair market rent for the occupancy. Presenting a false document claiming authority to stay is forgery, and the statute provides that "Law enforcement may immediately remove a person who commits the offense of unlawful squatting from the premises." The same 2025 act created fraudulent sale or lease of property (45-6-207): knowingly listing or advertising residential or commercial property for sale or rent without legal title or authority, punishable by a fine of at least $1,000, county jail of not less than 6 months, or both. For the civil side of occupancy disputes, see Montana squatters' rights. For the rules on force against an intruder, see Montana self-defense laws.

Montana disorderly conduct and trespass penalties at a glance

Montana does not sort crimes into lettered classes. Most of these sections set their own sentence, and the code defines a felony as an offense for which the sentence is death or "imprisonment in a state prison for a term exceeding 1 year" (45-2-101(23)). Where an offense is designated a misdemeanor with no penalty stated, MCA 46-18-212 allows up to 6 months in the county jail, a fine of up to $500, or both. For Montana's sentencing rules in general, see Montana felony and misdemeanor penalties.

Recent changes

• 2025, Senate Bill 101 (Chapter 179, Laws of 2025). Created unlawful squatting (45-6-206) and fraudulent sale or lease of property (45-6-207).
• 2025, House Bill 354 (Chapter 446, Laws of 2025). Amended 45-6-203(3); a person convicted of trespass in the listed hunting, fishing and Fish, Wildlife and Parks situations "must be subject to" revocation of hunting, fishing and trapping privileges for up to 24 months. Before the act, revocation was discretionary ("may"), and the act applies to violations charged on or after its effective date.
• 2025, House Bill 642 (Chapter 332, Laws of 2025). Amended 45-8-111 so that camping in violation of an ordinance or statute constitutes a public nuisance.
• 2025, Chapter 410. Created criminal trespass by unmanned aerial vehicle (45-6-210).
• 2025, Chapter 116. Amended the critical infrastructure sections, 82-1-601 and 82-1-602.
• 2023, Chapter 767, Laws of 2023. Rewrote 45-8-101. Before it, a first offense of the fighting, noise, language, traffic, access and meeting forms carried a fine of up to $100 only (with up to 10 days available for a second offense within 1 year), the false fire report, hazardous condition and false explosion report forms carried up to $1,000, up to 1 year, or both, and a separate form covered conduct a peace officer recognized as creating "an articulable public safety risk." The current text sets up to $100, up to 10 days, or both for every form except the false explosion report.

The disorderly conduct text quoted on this page is MCA 45-8-101 as it appears in the 2025 Montana Code Annotated.

Federal law separately governs conduct on federal property and at the U.S. Capitol; see the disorderly conduct and trespass laws by state hub.

Related Montana laws

• Disorderly conduct and trespass laws by state
• Montana noise laws
• Montana felony and misdemeanor penalties
• Montana squatters' rights
• Montana self-defense laws
• Montana drone laws
• How to charge someone with trespassing

This article provides general legal information about Montana's disorderly conduct, public-order and criminal trespass statutes as of 2026-10-18. It is not legal advice. For advice about a specific situation, contact a lawyer licensed in Montana.

Last updated: 2026-10-18.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is disorderly conduct a misdemeanor in Montana?

MCA 45-8-101 names no class but sets a county-jail-or-fine sentence, which fits the code definition of a misdemeanor in 45-2-101(42). Most forms carry up to $100, up to 10 days, or both; a false explosion report carries up to $1,000, up to 1 year, or both. A threat or false report of a pending fire, explosion or disaster endangering life or property is also felony intimidation under 45-5-203(2), up to 10 years.

Can you get disorderly conduct for swearing in Montana?

Using threatening, profane or abusive language is one of the listed forms in 45-8-101(1)(c), but it counts only when the person knowingly disturbs the peace by it.

Is public intoxication illegal in Montana?

No. Under MCA 53-24-107, a person who appears intoxicated in public does not commit a criminal offense solely by being intoxicated, though a peace officer may detain the person for their own protection.

What are the degrees of criminal trespass in Montana?

Montana has no degrees. Criminal trespass to property under 45-6-203 is one offense, punishable by up to $500, up to 6 months in the county jail, or both, with possible loss of hunting, fishing and trapping privileges for up to 24 months in listed situations.

Is trespassing a felony in Montana?

Ordinary trespass is not. Trespass on a fenced or posted critical infrastructure facility with intent to damage it or impede its operations is a felony, up to $4,500, up to 18 months, or both (82-1-602). Unlawful entry with intent to commit an offense inside an occupied structure is burglary, up to 20 years.

Does Montana have a purple paint law?

No. Montana posting uses written notice or at least 50 square inches of fluorescent orange paint on a post, structure or natural object, with the entire post painted if it is a metal fencepost, at each outer gate and normal point of access (45-6-201(2)).

What happens if a landowner or business tells you to leave in Montana?

Under 45-6-201(1), the privilege to enter or remain may be revoked at any time by personal communication of notice from the landowner or another authorized person. Knowingly remaining unlawfully after that is criminal trespass under 45-6-203.

Is squatting a crime in Montana?

Yes, since 2025. Knowingly entering another's premises without consent and residing there for any period is unlawful squatting under 45-6-206, a misdemeanor with fair-rent restitution, and the statute allows law enforcement to remove the person immediately.