Mike Menahanis is a Former Deputy Lewis and Clark County Attorney and the current representative of House District 82.  As a Deputy County Attorney in Helena for the past 13 years, Menahan has extensive experience in the enforcement of Montana's criminal laws.  He has been the prosecutor in more than 100 jury trials, specializing in domestic violence, felony DUI and negligent homicide cases.

In addition to criminal matters, Mike Menahan has a particular interest  in mental health law and represents the state in civil mental commitments.  He serves on the Board of Directors for the State of Montana Central Service Area Authority, which plans and implements mental health care in the central Montana region.  Menahan has also been instrumental in providing crisis intervention training at the Montana Law Enforcement Academy in an effort to provide police officers with the tools to safely and humanely deal with mentally ill people.  For his service to the Helena community, his efforts have been recognized by the Montana chapter of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI).
 
An active volunteer in the Helena community, Menahan served on the Board of Directors for The Friendship Center from 2000 to 2006, which provides assistance to victims of domestic and sexual violence.  He currently serves on the Board of Directors of Grandstreet Theatre.
 
Menahan graduated with high honors from the University of Montana in 1987 with a degree in political science.  He received his law degree at the University of Montana School of Law in 1994.  Working his way through college and law school, Menahan was a forest firefighter for nine seasons serving as a squad boss for the Montana Department of State Lands (now DNRC).
  
Menahan's legislative experience includes internships at the Montana Legislature and U.S. Senator Max Baucus' office in Washington D.C.  He was the Senate Bills Coordinator in 1985 and the House Assistant Sergeant-at-Arms in 1989 for the Montana Legislature.  Menahan's father, William T. "Red" Menahan, an Anaconda Democrat served in the Montana House of Representatives for thirty years and was a public school teacher for thirty-five.  

A fifth-generation Helenan, Menahan traces his family roots to the earliest days of Helena's mining camp.  His wife, Stacy Tureck, is a physical therapist.  They have two daughters, a sophomore at Helena High and a seventh-grader at Helena Middle School.