2. Police blotter.

The initial incident report is public criminal justice information. Mont. Code Ann. § 44-5-104. An incident should not be “not reported or memorialized” so that the incident doesn’t have to be released to the public. See Mont. Code Ann. § 2-3-212. The initial incident report is the first recorded report that a criminal offense may have occurred, not that a criminal offense actually did occur. The following information must be included in the initial incident report and shown to the public by any officer or employee: 42 Mont. A.G. Op. 119 (1988).

            1) factual statement about the event which includes (but is not limited to):

            a)  The general nature of the charges against the accused;

b)      The offense location

c)      The name, age and residence of the accused ,

d)     The name of the victim, unless the offense charged was a sex crime;

e)      The name of a witness, unless the witness has requested confidentiality.

2) report of the seizure of any physical evidence (but not statements made by the accused), limited to a description of the evidence seized.