Officials in Darby, Mont., a town of 625 in Ravalli
County, estimate that dealing with militia leader Cal Greenup and
his family cost $7,000 in enforcement and legal expenses. That
scuffle, along with $13,000 in legal fees spent on another
anti-government resident who sued the town over a drunk driving
arrest, took nearly all of Darby’s taxes, town clerk Miriam Rodgers
told the Missoulian. Also, bills in Musselshell County, Mont.,
where there was a February confrontation with several
self-described “freemen,” including Militia of Montana’s John
Trochmann, have skyrocketed, says the county attorney. “These
exorbitant costs are being absorbed by (taxpayers) for people who
are tax protesters,” says county Sheriff Paul Smith. If Republicans
in Congress get their way, local authorities could shoulder even
more of the burden. Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, recommended to the
House Appropriations Committee in May “zeroing out” the entire law
enforcement budget for the Bureau of Land Management. Sen. Larry
Craig, R-Idaho, supports disarming federal agents to alleviate
public fear and suspicion, and Rep. Helen Chenoweth, R-Idaho, wants
to prohibit federal officers from arming themselves without the
permission of local authorities. And if that weren’t enough, some
Montana businessmen fear that militia activity is driving away
tourists. Says Darby mayor and bar owner Rich Higgins: “I feel a
downturn in business in town, and it might be attributable to the
militia.”
* Elizabeth
Manning
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Militias busting rural budgets.
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