Story highlights The incident took place the night before Montana's congressional election

Greg Gianforte pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault

(CNN) Greg Gianforte, the Montana congressman-elect who was accused of "body slamming" a reporter, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault Monday morning.

Judge Rick West sentenced Gianforte to a 180-day deferred sentence, 40 hours of community service, 20 hours of anger management and a $300 fine along with a $85 court fee.

West originally sentenced Gianforte to a four days of jail time, to be completed in part through a work program, but switched instead to the hours of community service and anger management as those guilty of assault charges are ineligible for the work program.

A misdemeanor assault conviction in Montana carries a maximum penalty of up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $500, according to the state government website.

Gianforte has apologized to the journalist, Ben Jacobs, and also pledged to donate $50,000 to the Committee to Protect Journalists, an organization that promotes press freedom, "in the hope that perhaps some good can come of these events."

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