Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. The jail figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 24, 2026 and September 30, 2026.
Flathead County, Montana, has about 115,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A DUI arrest in Flathead County starts two cases, a criminal case in a Justice or Municipal Court and a license case before the Motor Vehicle Division, and leaves three records. This guide follows the arrest from the roadside to the court file and the driving record.
This guide covers the law, the arrest, booking, the court case, the license case, the records and common questions.
Related guides: Flathead County public records, Flathead County arrest records, Flathead County warrants, Flathead County inmate search, Flathead County criminal records, Montana arrest records and Montana inmate search.
The DUI Law in Montana
In Montana the offense is DUI, and the limit is 0.08.
Driving in Montana is consent to a breath or blood test when an officer has cause to suspect DUI; the license case that follows a refusal or a failed test is run by the Motor Vehicle Division, separately from the criminal case.
Who Makes DUI Arrests in Flathead County
The Flathead County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Kalispell, Whitefish and Columbia Falls make the DUI arrests in Flathead County.
Together, the four agencies in Flathead County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 1,787 arrests to the FBI that year, all offenses together; the FBI's count for Flathead County does not break DUI out.
Booking After a DUI Arrest in Flathead County
A driver arrested for DUI and kept in custody goes to the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest. The jail, run by the Flathead County Sheriff's Office, held about 93 people on an average day in 2021 by the Vera Institute of Justice's count and has a custody page SearchSystems verified at apps.flathead.mt.gov/jailroster/?report=bookings&sort=bookdate&days=2. The Flathead County inmate search guide covers the jail in full.
The Court Case
A DUI charge from Flathead County is heard in a Justice or Municipal Court; the County Attorney or, in a municipal court, the city's own prosecutor brings it.
The County Attorney's page SearchSystems verified is at flatheadcounty.gov, phone (406) 758-5630.
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at flatheadcounty.gov/department-directory/justice_court, phone 406-758-5643. That page belongs to a lower court, the Justice Court, not to the Flathead County District Court.
Montana has no single public index of every trial court case; each court's records are looked up through that court.
The License Case
A DUI arrest starts two cases: the criminal one above and an administrative one over the license, run by the Motor Vehicle Division. The driving record, kept by the Montana Motor Vehicle Division, carries the result of both.
The Records a DUI Leaves
- The arrest report: from the agency that made the arrest, under the Montana Public Records Act.
- The court file: from a Justice or Municipal Court, kept by the Clerk of District Court.
- The driving record: from the Montana Motor Vehicle Division.
More on each: Flathead County arrest records, Flathead County police reports and Flathead County court records.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the DUI limit in Montana?
0.08 percent blood alcohol.
Where is a DUI case from Flathead County heard?
In a Justice or Municipal Court. The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at flatheadcounty.gov.
Where is a person arrested for DUI in Flathead County held?
At the county jail, run by the Flathead County Sheriff's Office, if kept in custody.
Who handles the license after a DUI arrest in Montana?
The Motor Vehicle Division, in an administrative case separate from the court case.
Is this the official Flathead County website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.