State v. Treible

I dissent from the Court’s opinion and would hold that the District Court erred in denying Treible’s motion for a directed verdict. The evidence presented by the State was insufficient to support the conviction. Treible’s connection to the stolen property is even more tenuous than co-defendant Benson’s connection — which this Court found to be inadequate to support the conviction. State v. Benson (1994), 266 Mont. 415, 880 P.2d 1338.

As the Court points out, the State concedes that there is a lack of direct evidence linking Treible to the stolen property. Although Treible rented a room from…