FBI calls for removal of occupiers following eight arrests and the death of one man late Tuesday.
Justice
Posted inArticles
Justice in the West has a double standard for protesters
In Boston over 200 years ago, a group of American patriots dressed and painted like Indians smashed crates and dumped tea into the city’s harbor. In today’s American West, protesters ride their ATVs into publicly owned canyons to protest federal restriction of motorized access, and more recently, grazing-fee opponents forcibly “occupy” the desks of wildlife […]
Posted inArticles
Former BLM chief: Bundys ‘pursuing an agenda’ on public land
Bob Abbey was Bureau of Land Management chief from 2009 to 2012 and Nevada state director from 1997 to 2005. In a recent interview with High Country News, he discusses the BLM’s response to ranchers, including Cliven Bundy in Nevada, who broke federal laws, as well as the importance of collaborating with local law enforcement when it comes […]
Posted inArticles
The BLM has armed up since 1978, but it’s still outgunned
In confrontations with armed groups like the Bundy supporters, local law enforcement matters most.
Posted inArticles
The BLM’s inconsistent approach toward rule breakers
A look at how the feds have — and have not — punished individuals for defying regulations.
Posted inArticles
Malheur occupation, explained
The deep history behind the Bundy brothers’ takeover of a wildlife refuge in Oregon.
Posted inArticles
Forty years of Sagebrush Rebellion
The Oregon occupation, the 2014 Bundy standoff and many other stories are all related to a long-simmering movement.
Posted inNovember 23, 2015: Water Hustle
Water hustle
Did one of Nevada’s top water regulators try to cash in on the drought?
Posted inGoat
Rancher vs the BLM: A 20-year standoff ends with tense roundup
‘As far as I’m concerned,’ Cliven Bundy says, ‘the BLM don’t exist.’
Posted inFebruary 18, 2013: Farming on the Fringe
Economy, distrust complicate allocation of tribal settlement money
When the Obama administration announced in April that it would pay 41 tribes some $1 billion to settle a lawsuit over federal mismanagement of trust funds, many saw it as a sort of stimulus package for Indian Country — a chance to invest in long-term development and infrastructure, such as schools, clinics and roads. “The […]
Posted inBlog
Cobell, settled at last
Federal government finally accounts for money mismanagement of tribal nations.
Posted inNovember 8, 2010: Dr. No
The dark side of Indian law
In his new book, In the Courts of the Conqueror, Walter Echo-Hawk discusses the 10 worst Indian law cases ever decided.
Posted inGoat
New law empowers tribal justice systems
In late July, President Obama, an adopted member of the Crow Tribe of southern Montana, signed the Tribal Law and Order Act. The measure, introduced by Senator Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) in 2008, aims to smooth out the “jurisdictional maze” of law enforcement on reservations in order to empower tribal communities to better confront crime. Many […]
Posted inApril 12, 2010: The Butterfly Sting
The Butterfly Sting
How a federal wildlife agent brought down one of the world’s most notorious insect thieves.
Posted inArticles
Court decision leaves tribes dangling
Critics say the Supreme Court continues to give justification to gut treaties and rob tribes of their land.
Posted inMarch 2, 2009: How low will it go?
Security vs. sovereignty
Border requirements trample on the rights of Indian nations.
Posted inFebruary 16, 2009: The Half-life of Memory
No backup on the Northern border
A rural county is saddled with international responsibility.
Posted inDecember 10, 2007: Rebels with a Lost Cause
Rebels with a lost cause
A movement of property-rights lawyers emerged from the sagebrush in the 1970s to fight a wave of environmental regulations. They are still fighting in courtrooms across the West, but their role remains ambiguous.
Posted inNovember 9, 1998: Grizzly war
A parade becomes a memorial after a murder
Laramie, Wyoming, wrestles with the hate in its midst when a gay student is beaten to death.
Posted inJune 27, 1994: Home, home on the range ... where neo-Nazis and skinheads roam
Return of the rustlers
Cattle rustling appears to be on the rise in Wyoming and other Western states. Kelly Hamilton, a law enforcement supervisor for the Wyoming State Livestock Board, says over 50 rustling incidents have been reported in the state in 1994. The increase stems from high cattle prices, but a major problem, Hamilton says, is that pickup […]