Former Rep Jailed in Dark Money Scandal

Former state legislator Wesley Prouse, implicated in a dark money political scandal in 2010, has been jailed in Billings for refusing to pay a $59,000 fine imposed in 2016.  The Billings Gazette reports that the 48-year-old former state Representative of Shepherd was imprisoned Tuesday by District Judge Michael Moses after his refusal to pay the fine.  Prouse was also given the option of providing financial records showing he couldn’t afford to pay up, but he chose not to produce those records.

The unpaid fine stems from Prouse’s involvement in a 2010 political campaign scheme in which candidates running in Republican primaries pledged loyalty to national anti-union groups for thousands of dollars in unreported campaign support, in direct violation of Montana campaign laws.  He received illegal contributions from Western Tradition Partnership, a group aligned with the National Right to Work Committee.