Donald A. Bentley, Jr. v. Roger W. Crist, Warden of Montana State Prison, and the State of Montana

Bentley was tried and convicted in a Montana state court on three counts of assault and the conviction was affirmed by the Supreme Court of Montana. State v. Bentley, 155 Mont. 383 , 472 P.2d 864 (1970). He then brought this petition for a writ of habeas corpus in the District of Montana.

The petition alleged that Bentley was required to appear in the courtroom wearing the jail uniform of the Mis-soula County Jail. It alleged further that the uniform consisted of distinctive gray coveralls imprinted with the words “Missoula County Jail” or “Missoula County Sheriff” across the front, that petitioner’s court appointed counsel objected to having him wear such clothing before a jury, and that his objection was overruled.

Counsel’s objection did not state either that Bentley was compelled to wear the uniform, or that he had no civilian clothing available or that he was unable to obtain civilian clothing.

The district court was of the opinion that the facts alleged in the petition, even if true, did not show that Bentley was denied his constitutional right to the presumption of innocence. This is contrary to the weight of authority in state and federal courts.

We conclude that the…