Smith v. State

Defendant appeals from an order of the Missoula County District Court denying his petition for post-conviction relief. At a previous hearing on the State’s petition to revoke defendant’s probation, the trial court not only revoked his probation, but designated him as a dangerous offender for purposes of parole eligibility. Defendant claims that the trial court had no authority to designate him as a dangerous offender at the hearing on the State’s petition to revoke his probation. We agree.

On March 22, 1978, the District Court sentenced the defendant to ten years in prison for the crime of…