State v. S. Walsh, 525 P.3d 343

Aug. 13, 2020: citizen reported an erratically driven vehicle; officer located driver Scott Walsh, detected alcohol, Walsh admitted drinking and refused field/breath tests; officer obtained warrant and a blood draw was performed.
Walsh was charged with felony DUI (sixth offense); trial originally set for Jan 2021, continued to April 2021.
The State's blood-draw nurse (Lily Schroeder) was residing in Greece and could not reasonably travel because of distance, multiple layovers, and COVID-19 travel advisories and testing requirements.
The State moved to permit Schroeder to testify in real time by two-way videoconference; Walsh objected and the District Court made detailed findings permitting video testimony under public-policy/Craig considerations.
Jury convicted Walsh; District Court sentenced him to five years at Montana State Prison (MSP) and imposed a $100 statutory surcharge.
On appeal, the Montana Supreme Court affirmed the conviction, held the two-way video testimony did not violate the Confrontation Clause, but agreed that sentencing to MSP and a $100 surcharge were errors and remanded for resentencing.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether permitting a witness to testify live by two-way videoconference violated the Confrontation Clause	Two-way video was necessary due to extraordinary travel burden and COVID-19 public-health/travel advisories; public policy supports remote testimony	Remote testimony denied Walsh his right to face-to-face confrontation under the Sixth Amendment and Montana Constitution	No violation: District Court made case-specific findings satisfying the Craig test's public-policy prong; reliability safeguards were present and Walsh did not contest the second prong
Whether sentencing Walsh to MSP and imposing a $100 surcharge complied with statutory sentencing requirements	State conceded the sentence to MSP and $100 surcharge were erroneous under the applicable DUI statute and surcharge statute	Walsh argued the sentence and surcharge were improper	Court reversed sentencing: defendant should have been sentenced to the Department of Corrections (13 months–5 years) not MSP, and surcharge should be $50; remanded for resentencing

State v. Mercier, 479 P.3d 967 (Mont. 2021) (discusses confrontation/face-to-face principles and application of Craig in Montana)
Maryland v. Craig, 497 U.S. 836 (1990) (approves use of video testimony when denial of face-to-face confrontation is necessary to further an important public policy and reliability is preserved)
State v. Hinshaw, 414 P.3d 271 (Mont. 2018) (sets standard for de novo review of sentencing legality)
State v. Rosling, 180 P.3d 1102 (Mont. 2008) (details parameters for appellate review of sentencing)