Mont. Code Ann. » TITLE 45. CRIMES · CHAPTER 8. OFFENSES AGAINST PUBLIC ORDER · Part 3. Weapons
Montana Code Annotated

Mont. Code Ann. § 45-8-318 (2026)

Possession Of Deadly Weapon By Prisoner Or Youth In Facility

✓ current as of May 2026
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  1. MCA Contents
  2. TITLE 45
  3. CHAPTER 8
  4. Part 3
  5. 45-8-318 Possession of deadly weapon by prisoner or youth in facility

TITLE 45. CRIMES

CHAPTER 8. OFFENSES AGAINST PUBLIC ORDER

Part 3. Weapons

Possession Of Deadly Weapon By Prisoner Or Youth In Facility

45-8-318. Possession of deadly weapon by prisoner or youth in facility. (1) A person commits the offense of possession of a deadly weapon by a prisoner if the person purposely or knowingly possesses or carries or has under the person's custody or control without lawful authority a dirk, dagger, pistol, revolver, slingshot, sword cane, billy, knuckles made of any metal or hard substance, knife, razor not including a safety razor, or other deadly weapon while the person is:

(a) a person committed to a state prison or incarcerated in a county jail, city jail, or regional jail and is:

(i) at a state prison, a state prison farm or ranch, or jail;

(ii) being conveyed to or from a place listed in this subsection (1)(a); or

(iii) under the custody of prison or jail officials, officers, or employees; or

(b) a person in a youth detention facility, secure detention facility, regional detention facility, short-term detention center, correctional facility, or shelter care facility, as those terms are defined in 41-5-103, and is at the facility, being conveyed to or from the facility, or under the custody of the facility officials, officers, or employees.

(2) A person convicted of the offense of possession of a deadly weapon by a prisoner shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for a term not less than 5 years or more than 15 years, by a fine of not more than $50,000, or by both fine and imprisonment.

(3) The youth court has jurisdiction of any violation of subsection (1)(b) unless the charge is filed in district court, in which case the district court has jurisdiction.

History: En. Sec. 1, Ch. 131, L. 1961; Sec. 94-3527.1, R.C.M. 1947; redes. 94-8-213 by Sec. 29, Ch. 513, L. 1973; R.C.M. 1947, 94-8-213; amd. Sec. 7, Ch. 198, L. 1981; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 424, L. 1987; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 168, L. 1997; amd. Sec. 78, Ch. 550, L. 1997; amd. Sec. 3, Ch. 491, L. 1999; amd. Sec. 23, Ch. 339, L. 2021.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 10 cases (3 in the last 5 years), 1979–2024 · leading case: State v. Perry, 590 P.2d 1129 (Mont. 1979).
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State v. Perry, 590 P.2d 1129 (Mont. 1979). · cites it 18× “1947, now section 45-8-318 MCA, is unconstitutionally vague.”
State v. Cobell, 2004 MT 46 (Mont. 2004). · cites it 4× “¶1 Gary Cobell (Cobell) pled guilty, pursuant to a plea agreement, to possession of a deadly weapon by a prisoner in a facility, a felony, in violation of § 45-8-318, MCA (1999), and was sentenced to five years to the Department of Corrections (DOC) to be served consecutively to…”
State v. Fadness, 2012 MT 12 (Mont. 2012). · cites it 6× “Section 45-8-318(1), MCA. 17 1972, pp. 1832-42 (twice rejecting a proposal to add “nor shall any person’s firearms be registered or licensed” to Article II, Section 12, with several opponents of this language arguing that the decision to adopt registration and licensing…”
Basto v. State, 2004 MT 257 (Mont. 2004). · cites it 2× “On April 18, 2001, Basto was charged with the offense of possession of a deadly weapon by a prisoner in violation of § 45-8-318(l)(a)(i), MCA, and assault with a bodily fluid in violation of § 45-5-214(l)(b), MCA.”
State v. Palmer, 723 P.2d 956 (Mont. 1986). · cites it 2× “On October 11, 1984, Palmer was charged by information with the felony offense of possession of a deadly weapon by a prisoner in violation of Section 45-8-318 (1), MCA. On December 3, 1984, Palmer filed a motion for psychiatric evaluation which was granted.”
State v. Birthmark, 833 P.2d 1103 (Mont. 1992). · cites it 6× “Birthmark (Birthmark), appeals his conviction of possession of a deadly weapon while in prison, pursuant to § 45-8-318, MCA, following a jury trial in the Third Judicial District Court, Powell County.”
State v. S. Maggi, 2024 MT 90 (Mont. 2024). · cites it 2× “¶1 Shane Maggi (Maggi) was convicted of aggravated assault, a felony in violation of § 45-5-202, MCA; assault with a weapon, a felony in violation of § 45-5-213, MCA; and possession of a deadly weapon by a prisoner, a felony in violation of § 45-8-318, MCA. At sentencing, the…”
State v. Z. Smith, 2024 MT 316N (Mont. 2024). · cites it 2× “Finally, on September 27, the state Charged Smith in Case 5 with Possession of Deadly Weapon by Prisoner or Youth in Facility in violation of § 45-8-318, MCA; Intimidation in violation of § 45-5-203, MCA; Assault with Weapon in violation of § 45-5-213, MCA; and Criminal Mischief…”
State v. Z. Smith, 2024 MT 316N (Mont. 2024). · cites it 2× “Finally, on September 27, the state Charged Smith in Case 5 with Possession of Deadly Weapon by Prisoner or Youth in Facility in violation of § 45-8-318, MCA; Intimidation in violation of § 45-5-203, MCA; Assault with Weapon in violation of § 45-5-213, MCA; and Criminal Mischief…”
State v. Bousquet, 808 P.2d 506 (Mont. 1991). · cites it 3× “Bousquet points out that Bousquet denied having a shank in his cell and that another inmate testified that the shank was planted by correctional officers.”
Mont. Code Ann. § 45-8-318(1): 1 case
State v. Fadness, 2012 MT 12 (Mont. 2012). “Section 45-8-318(1), MCA. 17 1972, pp. 1832-42 (twice rejecting a proposal to add “nor shall any person’s firearms be registered or licensed” to Article II, Section 12, with several opponents of this language arguing that the decision to adopt registration and licensing…”
Mont. Code Ann. § 45-8-318(l)(a)(i): 1 case
Basto v. State, 2004 MT 257 (Mont. 2004). “On April 18, 2001, Basto was charged with the offense of possession of a deadly weapon by a prisoner in violation of § 45-8-318(l)(a)(i), MCA, and assault with a bodily fluid in violation of § 45-5-214(l)(b), MCA.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.