Montana AG Calls on State Supreme Court to Dismiss County Attorney Petition

Things are heating up between Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen and Gallatin County. AG Knudsen has formally asked the Montana Supreme Court to throw out a petition brought against him by Gallatin County Attorney Audrey Cromwell.

Montana AG Knudsen vs. Gallatin County AG Cromwell

Montana AG Knudsen "asked the Montana Supreme Court to dismiss Gallatin County Attorney Audrey Cromwell’s petition requesting the Attorney General’s supervisory control be terminated" according to the official reply on the site for the Montana Department of Justice on Monday (6/15).

This is the latest in an on-going debate that goes back as far as October 2025 between Cromwell and Montana AG Knudsen, who argued that the Gallatin County Attorney was inhibiting ICE operations by limiting information they shared with ICE.

READ MORE: Fake Parking Tickets Are Popping Up Around Great Falls

Back on April 30, Montana AG Knudsen announced that he had invoked supervisory control over Cromwell, "following her failure to follow the law and issue a memorandum clarifying that Gallatin County may share confidential criminal justice information (CCJI) with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for civil immigration enforcement functions."

Attorney General Knudsen wrote in a letter to Gallatin County Attorney Cromwell when invoking control at the time, writing:

"The cognitive dissonance in your reply is astounding. You have now sworn under oath that there is no policy regarding sharing CCJI with ICE. Yet you also maintain that, under your novel interpretation of Montana law, Gallatin County will not share CCJI with ICE for civil immigration enforcement purposes without a court order. Both things cannot be true."

Why is AG Knudsen Asking the Montana Supreme Court to Toss the Case?

According to the official reply and official release, AG Knudsen says Gallatin County Attorney Cromwell is "asking the court to rule on a political issue – not a legal question."

AG Knudsen's office also adds that the legislature granted him authority to "to exercise supervisory powers over county attorneys in all matters pertaining to the duties of their offices and from time to time require of them reports as to the condition of public business entrusted to their charge."

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How do you think this saga will end? How do you think it should end? I would love to hear your thoughts HERE.