Sheriff

Stillwater County’s Sheriff is the chief executive officer of the agency and is elected by the residents of Stillwater County.  The Sheriff and command staff manage the day-to-day investigations, evidence management, civil process, and a number of support operations necessary to provide full law enforcement coverage and services for Stillwater County.

The Stillwater County Sheriff’s Office is the chief law enforcement agency in Stillwater County, Montana.  It is comprised of approximately twenty-six employees including sworn officers, communications technicians, and professional support staff.  The Sheriff’s Office provides general law enforcement, court security, dispatching, and search and rescue operations for the citizens of Stillwater County in a service area of 1,805 miles.  Additionally, this agency provides specialized regional services to the entire county and contract law enforcement to specific areas.

Through a contract with the Yellowstone County Detention Facility (YCDF), Stillwater County prisoners are housed at the YCDF. Visit YCDF's official website for prisoners' detail. 

The Coroner is an elected public official.  In Montana, the Coroner can be a separate office, or it can be combined with the position of Sheriff, as it is in Stillwater County. The Coroner can appoint Deputy Coroners.

The Coroner must determine the cause and manner of death.  The manner of death is listed as an accident, homicide, suicide, natural, undetermined, or pending (waiting for autopsy results).  Cause of death is a medical-legal determination, such as cancer, heart attack, or blunt force trauma to the head.

The Coroner must attend a 40-hour class on death investigation, and then attend 16 hours of training every two years. The Coroner can get assistance from the State Medical Examiner.

The Coroner inquires into any death that was caused by anything other than natural causes (accident, homicide), or when no licensed physician will sign the death certificate. The death certificates are filed at the local registrar’s office.

Montana law requires that the Coroner be notified immediately of a death.  The Coroner will then determine if an inquiry will be necessary.  No individual may move a deceased person without authorization from the Coroner.