AN OPEN LETTER TO JUDGE KOLAR IN BILLINGS, MONTANA
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A Brief on the ‘Efficiency’ of Jenifer Fairchild’s Citation Hearing on August 5, 2025 in Billings Montana Open Court under the ruling of Sheila Kolar:
During my initial court case on August 5th, I felt overwhelmed by the pace of the proceeding. I am an artist, I did not attend law school, I did as much research as I could beforehand, and I still left the podium feeling as though I had been herded like cattle to the plea agreement of the court & cities choosing.
My intention going in to the hearing was to protest the system, to go to trial to prove that what I had been cited for was not technically in breach of the statute in which I was accused of being in violation of, and to not feed the system. I wanted to walk away feeling as though I had used my voice, advocated for what I believed in, stood with myself, and made sure that I was clear, intentional, and thorough — expecting that same treatment in return. In other words, ‘justice’ as defined by google dictionary: "a concern for justice, peace, and genuine respect for people”.
With the urgency and speed at which my charge and rights were read to me by Judge Kolar, and by the abrupt and unyielding manner in which the city attorneys responded to my case — feeling both personal and wholly impersonal at the exact same time (no eye contact, speaking as though I wasn’t there, making speculative remarks about the nature of my citation) the entire situation formed a sort of coercive force that left me feeling as though I had no chance at a trial — even if I requested one — because ‘the city wouldn’t move forward with it’. This felt supported by Judge Kolar, making it seem that the cities wishes would be granted irregardless of my wishes, and that yielding to their staunch position against myself and my work with a plea of no contest, was in fact the most ‘efficient’ way forward. While I can’t say definitively that this was the case, my memory of the experience is feeling ‘suggested’ by judge Kolar to plea no contest.
At the end of Judge Kolar’s bio online, it reads ‘She has successfully managed the high-volume caseload with ease and continues to work for more efficiency with regards to the public experience’.
My question to you Judge Kolar, is, at what cost? To what end is ‘efficiency’ the source, course, and goal of the judicial court system of Billings? It seems that when ‘efficiency’ is the goal, then effectiveness gets thrown out, thoroughness gets looked over, and any care to create actual lasting, fundamental change in peoples lives who attend your court, irrelevant.
My second question is, why do you think there is a high-volume caseload in the first place?
If a person cannot truly comprehend what type of plea bargain they are entering into, or how the system — and city — is working for/against them, then how do things actually change?
Further, how do you make true impact, as a Judge, in upholding the law you seem to truly care about, if you don’t take ~time~ to do what you can to ensure that the people who enter your courtroom genuinely understand the consequences of their actions to a degree that potentially erases the chance of them being repeat offenders?
In an environment that is supposed to foster fairness, equanimity, and justice, you have the critical opportunity to create ~space~ for people — despite the nature of the situation — to use their voice, advocate for themselves, and exercise self-agency for maybe the first time in their lives.
I suggest incorporating a mandated practice of inviting defendants to repeat back to you everything they’ve been told about their situation by both yourself, and the city attorney’s, in order to ensure maximum retention of information — regardless of how ‘inefficient’ that may be.
Who you are actually wanting to be in service to — an efficient system for the sake of efficiency? Or the evolution & growth of the people who are standing at the podium, and the people of your community?
Thank you for your time.
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As of this publishing, I have yet to receive a response from Judge Kolar on whether my motion to withdraw my court plea of no contest will be granted with a retrial.
