Montana § 46-10-202 - Presentation Of Evidence

§ 46-10-202. Presentation Of Evidence

Presentation of evidence. (1) The defendant may not enter a plea. The judge shall hear the evidence without unnecessary delay. All witnesses must be examined in the presence of the defendant. The defendant may cross-examine witnesses against the defendant and may introduce evidence in the defendant's own behalf. For purposes of this section, a preliminary examination conducted by the use of two-way electronic audio-video communication that allows all of the participants to be observed and heard by all other participants and that allows the defendant to cross-examine witnesses is considered to be an examination of a witness in the presence of the defendant. Two-way electronic audio-video communication may not be used unless the defendant's counsel is physically present with the defendant, unless this requirement is waived by the defendant. (2) During the examination of a witness or when the defendant is making a statement or testifying, the judge may, and on the request of the defendant or state shall, exclude all other witnesses. The judge may also cause the witnesses to be kept separate and to be prevented from communicating with each other until all are examined. (3) An objection to evidence on the ground that it has been acquired by unlawful means is not properly made at the preliminary examination. Motions to suppress must be made to the trial court as provided in 46-13-302 . (4) For purposes of a hearing under this chapter, a defendant may, in the discretion of the court, appear before the court either by physical appearance or by two-way electronic audio-video communication. The audio-video communication must operate so that the defendant and the judge can see each other simultaneously and converse with each other, so that the defendant and the defendant's counsel, if any, can communicate privately, and so that the defendant and the defendant's counsel are both physically present in the same place during the two-way electronic audio-video communication. The defendant may waive the requirement that counsel be in the defendant's physical presence during the two-way electronic audio-video communication. A judge may order a defendant's physical appearance in court for a preliminary examination.