Michael Howell

The temperature may have been low on Saturday, but enthusiasm was high at River Park for the Women’s March in Hamilton. Over 200 participants marched down Main Street in Hamilton to express their views on a variety of issues from women’s rights to climate change to immigration. Many also used the platform to express their […]

Ravalli County Commissioners agreed to participate in a $6 million settlement agreement ending a lawsuit filed over wrongful conviction. The lawsuit, filed by Paul Jenkins, Kenneth Jenkins and Crystal Combs, stemmed from Paul Jenkins serving over 23 years in prison for the murder of a woman in 1994 that he did not commit. Although the […]

The Ravalli County Board of Health has been reviewing the county’s wastewater discharge permitting system for some time now and last fall began holding serious discussions on the subject. Those meetings have been primarily attended by a small number of real estate brokers and builders. According to John Palacio, director of the county’s Environmental Health […]

Casey Ferguson is the Stevi Rocks! Award recipient for the month of January. Ferguson is a math teacher at Stevensville High School and teaches a wide array of classes ranging from Algebra 1A to AP Statistics.  “This is Casey’s second year at Stevensville High School and she is doing a fantastic job in her classes […]

Dangerous incidents end without injuries, with aid of law enforcement Responding to a domestic dispute or a domestic violence call is one of the most dangerous situations a law enforcement officer may face. Emotions may be running extremely high, making the actions of those involved unpredictable. The presence of law enforcement may be viewed as an intrusion […]

Ravalli County Commissioner Chris Hoffman announced last week that he does not intend to seek reelection in 2020. He said that, while it is not without some regret that he has decided not to seek a third term, it is the right time to begin the next chapter for himself and his family. Hoffman cited […]

The Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission denied a request from Stevensville resident Jim Crews to exclude hovercraft from the definition of a vessel and exempt hovercraft from the 20 mph limit on motorized craft on the Clark Fork and Bitterroot Rivers. The commission received the petition in October of 2019 and dismissed it at […]

Newly elected Stevensville Town Council member Bob Michalson was selected to serve as Council President at the January 9 Town Council meeting. Michalson served previously on the council and as president before resigning because of what he claimed were on-going illegal activities by Mayor Brandon Dewey. None of the legal complaints lodged with the Town […]

Four Ravalli County Deputy Attorneys have filed a suit in District Court against Ravalli County over unpaid wages. The attorneys allege that their Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) payments have been withheld illegally. They argue that they should have been receiving the same COLA increase as every other county employee who is not bound under […]

The Ravalli County Commissioners denied the request for an extension of the Preliminary Plat Approval granted to the Granstdale Addition major subdivision in 2011. One of the largest subdivisions ever approved by the county, the Grantsdale Addition proposed the creation of 181 lots on 67 acres at the intersection of Skalkaho Road and Grantsdale Cut-Off. […]

John Ellington is the Town of Stevensville’s newest police officer, having started work on December 17, 2019. Ellington is a veteran, having served in the U.S. Marine Corps infantry, serving in combat in Afghanistan. Following his five years in the Marines, Ellington attended Police Academy and then took a job as a County Sheriff’s Deputy […]

Mike Hansen’s family has owned land up the West Fork of the Bitterroot for a long time. He is an avid fisherman and has enjoyed fishing since the 1950s on a stretch of the West Fork that he can walk to from his house. He is especially avid about wade fishing. “If you can suddenly […]