HELENA – Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen issued the following statement on the passing of former Lt. Attorney General Kris Hansen:
“Kris was a dear friend, a conservative leader, and an amazing woman who dedicated her life to others. She served our nation as a member of the National Guard in Iraq and a tour with the Central Intelligence Agency in Somalia. She served her community in the Hill County Attorney’s Office and represented her neighbors in the Montana Legislature. She served the state she loved in the Auditor’s Office and then as the Lieutenant Attorney General in the Montana Department of Justice. It was an honor to have Kris on our team and we deeply miss her presence.”
Hansen joined the Department of Justice the same day Attorney General Knudsen was sworn into office. Prior to joining the Department, she had been the Deputy State Auditor/Chief Legal Counsel under State Auditor Matt Rosendale and a state legislator. Hansen served on the Finance, Tax, Education, Judiciary, and Local Government committees, developing expertise in state law and finance. While serving as a state legislator, Hansen was also the Chief Deputy County Attorney in Havre for three years, then an attorney in private practice in Havre for the following six years. Hansen was a Montana National Guard veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, 2008-09, and served a tour of duty with the Central Intelligence Agency in Mogadishu, Somalia, immediately following the Black Hawk Down incident in 1993-94.