Montana attorney general orders dismissal of case against Rocking R Bar; Gallatin County attorney

Montana attorney general orders dismissal of case against Rocking R Bar; Gallatin County attorney fires back


Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen ordered Thursday that the Gallatin County attorney dismiss a lawsuit against Rocking R Bar for violating a 10 p.m. closing time ordered by the county health board to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

But County Attorney Marty Lambert fired back, rejecting the order and saying that Knudsen didn’t haven’t any say in the matter because the state isn’t a party in the case.

Knudsen directed Lambert to dismiss the case against the bar, according to a news release on Thursday. He said the 10 p.m. closing time “defies commonsense” and is “devastating to Montana workers and small businesses.”

“Our action today is a clear message that we need to safely reopen our economy and will not allow overzealous local governments to hold Montana businesses and their employees hostage,” Knudsen said in the news release.

Read more: https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/coronavirus/montana-attorney-general-orders-dismissal-of-case-against-rocking-r-bar-gallatin-county-attorney-fires/article_a9a2769a-9e8c-5624-87f0-f39a257d3389.html