GLASGOW — Todd and Krista Kolstad of Glasgow shared a YouTube video in January detailing the events that led to the state of Montana’s involvement with their family. After the video was released, MTN visited the Kolstad family at their home. Following this meeting, MTN conducted an investigation into the family’s claims that their parental rights were violated (part one; part two, part three).
Since MTN’s last meeting with Todd and Krista, a lot has transpired:
Glasgow family sues DPHHS over alleged wrongdoing
“As far as how we’re doing, we’ve been run out of our house and run out of our town,” explained Krista Cummins-Kolstad.
Life as they once knew it will never be the same.
“It’s not safe for us to be in Glasgow with the corruption there,” she added.
Todd and Krista Kolstad have been fighting for over a year to protect their family. MTN was the first to meet with the Kolstad’s in January and previously released a 3-part series sharing their experiences with Child and Family Services. Following the publication of these stories in the Spring, the Kolstad family continues their battle against the state of Montana and what they perceive as injustices against them.
“What we’ve done is we filed in federal court against the two workers that are from CPS, Cindy Baillargeon and Crystal Whitmore.”
In 2023, Child and Family Services, a division of the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services, intervened in the lives of the Kolstad’s. The state’s involvement was triggered by a suspected suicide attempt by the Kolstad’s biological female child.
DOCUMENTS
In early 2024, the state of Montana withdrew from the Kolstad’s child welfare case and ordered their child to Canada to live with their birth mother, who had been absent from their lives for nearly a decade. The decision was made based on the Kolstad’s deemed unfit for a safe reunification with their child who wanted to transition to a male. A federal lawsuit was filed against the Child Protection Specialists involved in their case, with Bozeman Attorney Matthew Monforton taking interest from a YouTube video shared by Todd and Krista in January. Click here for a repost of the video.
“Any time a judge imposes an illegal gag order on a case, that’s always a red flag something bad is going on that the judiciary doesn’t want the public to know about,” explained Monforton.
Valley County District Court issued a gag order on the Kolstad’s when they began to speak publicly about their case. The Kolstad’s religious and moral beliefs influenced their decision to deny their child the choice to identify as a male and use traditional male pronouns.
“You don’t have the right to tell a parent that they can’t tell their child no. All we did was say, ‘No, you’re not going to be a boy. No, we’re not going to go down this road with you.’” Cummins-Kolstad said.
The court believed that the parents’ choice to speak publicly would draw negative attention to the child and possibly expose them to bullying or ostracization in the Glasgow community. In MTN’s investigation, the Kolstad’s rejected a treatment plan that included family and marriage counseling to facilitate the safe return of their child.
The Kolstad’s refused to comply with the treatment plan stating, “If you tell me you’re a unicorn, Ryan. That’s fine. You’re an adult, but there is nothing that says I have to agree and look at you like a unicorn. It goes against our values, and we don’t need that reevaluated and we won’t do it.”
The federal lawsuit against the individual Child Protection Specialists of DPHHS outlines the sequence of events leading to the state’s involvement with the family. The document aligns with what MTN discovered in its investigation and the family-provided documents. Monforton asserts that DPHHS did not obtain a proper court order to remove the Kolstad child from their parents’ custody while admitted at Francis Mahon Deaconess Hospital or sufficiently prove that the child was in immediate danger to themselves.
“The hospital records make it clear that at the time the Kolstad’s daughter was seized by CPS, she was hospitalized in the Glasgow hospital. She was under 24-hour observation,” Monforton said. “A nurse was present in her room 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and the hospital had indicated that they would continue that process until a bed opened in Billings Clinic, as agreed upon by the parents and CPS in Glasgow Hospital.”
The Kolstad’s have consistently argued that parents should have the right to raise their children as they see fit.
Monforton added, “The United States Constitution clearly states that parents have a right to raise their child as they see fit. And those rights cannot be interfered with by the government without due process.”
As the Kolstad’s navigate life without their child, they persist in pushing back against what they perceive as government overreach. The lawsuit in federal court prompted a Cease and Desist letter issued to Lt. Governor Kristen Juras. The letter expresses concern over Governor Greg Gianforte addressing the Kolstad case on his X account, indicating that the Lt. Governor investigated the case and found no wrongdoing.
“That was illegal in contrary to what the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor were saying about it being legal. That is bogus,” Todd Kolstad stated. “There was no legal grounds. It was completely an illegal kidnapping of our daughter and taking her across state lines.”
Monforton, the Kolstad’s legal representative in the federal lawsuit, outlined in the letter that Lt. Governor Juras spoke negatively about the Kolstad family at events across the state while Todd and Krista were silenced under a gag order.
“It was grossly unfair and misconduct by the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor to address this case on social media, while at the same time the Kolstad’s were under the threat of a contempt hearing and jail time. If they talked about this case, it’s one of the many incredibly unfair aspects of this case.”
As the Kolstad’s approach their trial for parental rights, they show no signs of slowing down. The couple hopes their efforts will drive Montana lawmakers to reform the child welfare system.
Previously reported by MTN, the Kolstad family filed a lawsuit against the Glasgow Police Department for an incident in 2021.
Todd Kolstad, the plaintiff in the suit, sued the City of Glasgow, Robert Weber, Tyler Edwards, and Joshua Nolan for misconduct while on duty for the Glasgow Police Department. The lawsuit stemmed from Todd’s arrest for allegedly resisting arrest in 2021, which resulted in a brain injury. Charges were filed against Kolstad that night, but they were dropped on May 31, 2024, when the Honorable Yvonne Laird approved an Order to Dismiss without prejudice to revoke the charges against Kolstad.
The Kolstad’s lawsuit against the defendants is ongoing. A copy of the suit was provided to MTN in February, detailing Mr. Kolstad’s intoxication. The document discusses his interactions with police officers and the physical force exerted on him. Throughout the legal battle with Child and Family Services, the family reports their child frequently lied and rarely behaved provocatively. The police were called in 2021 after the Kolstad child claimed their parents were fighting and the child was “scared.” In 2023, the child confessed to ingesting toilet bowl cleaner and over-the-counter medication in a suicide attempt, leading to police intervention and CFS involvement. The child often told DPHHS caseworkers that their father drank frequently, and their parents fought often. Despite the dropped charges, there is no evidence that Mr. Kolstad was intoxicated the night of his 2021 altercation with police or that a fight occurred in the home.
MTN reached out to the Glasgow Police Department and the Department of Justice for comment via email, but both declined to respond.
As MTN continues to monitor the Kolstad’s fight for parental rights, Todd wants to emphasize that his family was perceived as normal before these incidents. The events of 2021 and 2023 were uncommon for them. He questions why something like this happened to his family and hopes to prevent other families from facing similar circumstances.
NOTE: Krista Cummins-Kolstad is the stepmother of the child removed from their custody. The biological mother resides in Canada. MTN previously contacted the biological mother but she declined to participate due to a court-issued gag order deemed fake by Monforton and the Kolstad’s.
MTN reached out to Governor Greg Gianforte’s Office, and a spokesperson stated that they do not comment on pending litigation and referred back to the initial statement from the office:
“While the State of Montana is limited in disclosing the specifics of cases involving minor children in its care due to their sensitive nature, broadly speaking, the state does not remove minors from homes to provide gender transition services or use taxpayer funds to pay for those services while a minor is in the custody of the state. As outlined in its statement of purpose, Child Protective Services protects children who have been or are at substantial risk of abuse, neglect, or abandonment. Furthermore, the Governor has asked his Department of Public Health and Human Services to codify a formal policy and/or develop a regulation to clarify and ensure the definition of abuse or neglect does not include a parent’s right to refuse to provide gender transition services to his or her minor child.”
MTN also reached out to Lt. Governor Kristen Juras and did not receive a response. Montana DPHHS also declined to comment on pending litigation.
On Wednesday, Monforton’s office contacted MTN to disclose that they are attempting to reach defendant Crystal Whitmore to serve her papers. The Kolstad’s legal counsel explained that they have yet to contact Whitmore and understand she has been placed on leave. MTN called the Valley County field office of DPHHS and received a busy tone.
We will continue to follow this story as more information becomes available.
