Granite County

Granite County follows Montana law on arrests, release, and courts. These rules are the same in every county in the state; the full set covers prosecutors, defense, and jails too.

Who decides release first

Each judge may post a bail schedule for offenses in that court, and a peace officer may accept bail under it without a judge. Otherwise the judge at the initial appearance, most often a justice of the peace or city judge, sets release.

MCA 46-9-302

Time to see a judge

An arrested person must be taken without unnecessary delay before the nearest and most accessible judge. The statute sets no hour limit.

MCA 46-7-101

Money bail

Money bail is allowed, and judges may post bail schedules that peace officers apply at the jail.

MCA 46-9-302

Courts

District courts try felonies. Justice courts in each county, and city or municipal courts in cities, hear misdemeanors, and justices of the peace and city judges can hold felony preliminary hearings.

MCA 3-5-302MCA 3-10-303MCA 3-11-102MCA 3-6-103

Judges and magistrates

Voters elect district judges to six-year terms; the governor fills vacancies from nominees, with Senate confirmation. Justices of the peace are elected on the nonpartisan ballot to four-year terms and need not be lawyers. Municipal court judges must be lawyers, while city judges need only meet the justice of the peace requirements.

Mont. Const. art. VII, secs. 7, 8MCA 3-5-201, 3-5-202MCA 3-10-201, 3-10-204MCA 3-11-201, 3-11-202MCA 3-6-201, 3-6-202

Read from the statutes and court rules cited, 2026-09-30. Which counties use the Public Safety Assessment today was not confirmed beyond the five pilot counties.

• Granite County Sheriff's OfficeCounty3,662 served

Agencies: FBI NIBRS master file 2025 batch headers; names from the FBI agency list, pulled 2026-09-29. An agency that serves several counties appears on each. Population served is the FBI's figure.