by Travis Mateer
A fellow citizen journalist who does primarily video and photo work–like his coverage of the Ghislaine Maxwell trial, which he covered in person–had Bozeman, Montana on his mind recently. Why? Because, thanks to Bozeman law enforcement, another example of the WILD WEST has emerged, along with the absolute black-hole-vacuum of accountability that makes it all possible.
There have been LOTS of people who have relocated to Montana these last 4 years, and they arrive with certain expectations that America is comprised of similar states with similar ways of doing things a civilized society has come to expect, like law enforcement.
Well, to quote the shocked citizen above, Montana law enforcement LITERALLY HAVE LAWS BUILT IN THAT COPS CAN DO WHATEVER THE FUCK THEY WANT TO YOU AND GET AWAY WITH IT.
Is this woman being hyperbolic, or literally accurate? And, if it’s the latter, what can be done about it?
Last Friday I was driving by the campus of UM when I noticed a police cruiser, the crime-scene truck for Missoula PD, and a Sheriff Office vehicle. What was going on? I don’t know, but I communicated with the professional communicators paid to communicate and they have to communicate back to me after I sent this email:
To emphasize how my skillset is NOT in taking clear nighttime pictures with my phone, here’s the image I got from a distance:
To give you an idea of where this is located, the footbridge across the Clark Fork is to the left. Will I get an informative response, or just some communication specialist BS?
I’ll get more into what I think might be happening in this town early next year, but there’s enough material that a larger project to REALLY tell that story is definitely needed. I had hopes last year to get something rolling, but instead GOT rolled by other forces. Will this upcoming year continue that trend, or will something finally give in the narrative control I’ve been battling for going on five years now?
On this final post of 2024 I won’t panhandle y’all for resources. There have been some VERY generous donors stepping up and helping when help was needed, and so I’ll just wrap up this post with a big THANK YOU!
2025? Bring it. I’ll be ready.
