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H6. City Manager Authority to Request AG AssistanceCity of Kalispell Charles A. Harball Office of City Attorney City Attorney 201 First Avenue East P.O. Box 1997 Kalispell, MT 59903-1997 TO: FROM: SUBJECT: DATE: MEMORANDUM Doug Russell, City Manager Charles Harball, City Attorney Tel 406.758.7709 Fax 406.758.7758 charball@kalispell.com Resolution No. 6007 Granting Authority to the City Manager to Request Assistance from the Attorney General Office December 7, 2020 DISCUSSION: From time to time criminal matters come before the prosecution authority of the City Attorney in which a conflict of interest or the appearance of a conflict of interest may arise or in which training in new aspects of the law will benefit the office. The laws of the State of Montana provide that municipalities may seek the assistance of the Attorney General Office to provide a disinterested prosecutor to prosecute cases in which a conflict of interest may arise or to provide a prosecutor to assist in the training of areas of novel law. For instance, the new marijuana law creates new aspects in the prosecution of driving while under the influence of intoxicating substances which will require additional training for the city prosecutors. In each case in which the city may seek support from the AG a separate request must be made. This would have to be accomplished through a formal resolution of the City Council, or, if the City Council grants the discretion and authority to the City Manager, only the resolution now before the Council will be necessary and all other requests can be made by the City Manager by means of a letter. RECOMMENDATION: The City Council should grant the discretion and authority to the City Manager to request criminal prosecution assistance from the AG as needed as this otherwise falls into the day to day operations of the City. ALTERNATIVE: The City Council may decline to pass the resolution. RESOLUTION NO. 6007 A RESOLUTION PROVIDING THE AUTHORITY TO THE CITY MANAGER TO SEEK ASSISTANCE FROM THE OFFICE OF THE MONTANA ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR CERTAIN CRIMINAL PROSECUTIONS AS ALLOWED BY STATUTE. WHEREAS, from time to time criminal matters come before the prosecution authority of the City Attorney in which a conflict of interest or the appearance of a conflict of interest may arise or in which training in new aspects of the law will benefit the office; and WHEREAS, MCA § 2-15-501(6) authorizes the Attorney General to provide assistance to prosecutors in the discharge of his or her duties; and WHEREAS, MCA § 44-4-111 authorizes and contemplates that the training coordinator for prosecutors and the bureau chief of the Prosecution Services Bureau (together with the deputies with said bureau) act as special counsel on request of a municipality and upon the approval of the city council; and WHEREAS, MCA § 44-4-103 authorizes and contemplates that attorneys assigned to the Prosecution Services Bureau of the Department of Justice may be appointed as special deputy city attorneys for the purposes of assisting in the prosecution of criminal matters; and WHEREAS, the city government of the City of Kalispell grants the day to day management of the city business matters to the City Manager; and WHEREAS, it is prudent and reasonable for the City Council to provide the discretion and authority to the City Manager to request any assistance required from the Attorney General, subject to the limitation of state legislation. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF KALISPELL AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. That the City Council grants to the City Manager the discretion and authority to seek assistance from the Office of Attorney General for assistance in the prosecution of criminal matters subject to the limitations of state law. PASSED AND APPROVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL AND SIGNED BY THE MAYOR OF THE CITY OF KALISPELL, THIS 7TH DAY OF DECEMBER 2020. Mark Johnson Mayor ATTEST: Aimee Brunckhorst, CMC City Clerk