Helt v. Guess — Order of Protection’s Child-Contact Ban Reversed for Lack of Statutory Child-Specific Findings
The Montana Supreme Court affirmed a protection order protecting the petitioner from the respondent but reversed the child-related provisions—including the elimination of all parenting contact—holding that Montana Code Annotated § 40-15-204(4) requires child-specific findings that the child was a victim of, witnessed, or was endangered by abuse, and that the court must explain why supervised visitation would not adequately address the proven safety concerns before imposing a total contact ban.