Montana Code 45-5-611. Bigamy
45-5-611. Bigamy. (1) A person commits the offense of bigamy if, while married, the person knowingly contracts or purports to contract another marriage unless at the time of the subsequent marriage:
Terms Used In Montana Code 45-5-611
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Knowingly: means only a knowledge that the facts exist which bring the act or omission within the provisions of this code. See Montana Code 1-1-204
- Person: includes a corporation or other entity as well as a natural person. See Montana Code 1-1-201
(a)the offender believes on reasonable grounds that the prior spouse is dead;
(b)the offender and the prior spouse have been living apart for 5 consecutive years throughout which the prior spouse was not known by the offender to be alive;
(c)a court has entered a judgment purporting to terminate or annul any prior disqualifying marriage and the offender does not know that judgment to be invalid; or
(d)the offender reasonably believes that the offender is legally eligible to remarry.
(2)A person convicted of bigamy shall be fined not to exceed $500 or be imprisoned in the county jail for any term not to exceed 6 months, or both.