Appeals Court rejects poaching indictments against Leech Lake Indians

The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals handed federal prosecutors another defeat Tuesday in their attempt to halt the commercial netting of fish on the Leech Lake Indian Reservation.

The appeals court ruled that U.S. District Judge John Tunheim correctly dismissed charges against four Indian men who were indicted in April 2013 for fish poaching.

"We conclude that the historic fishing rights of the Chippewa Indians bar this prosecution of defendants for taking fish within the Leech Lake Reservation and selling them," the appeals court said.

The four arrests came as part of a federal crackdown on poaching on some of northern Minnesota's most popular lakes.

Ten indictments were issued with much fanfare. On Tuesday Ben Petok, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office in Minneapolis declined to comment "while we review the court decision."

"We're delighted," said Paul Engh, attorney for Marc Lyons, one of the defendants. "The ruling affirms the traditional fishing rights that the Chippewa Indians have had for more than 150 years. The ruling upholds what they negotiated in 1837," he said, referring to a treaty Chippewa Indians signed at Fort Snelling.

Regrettably, he said, Lyons died a month ago "before he could see his victory."

"These were very serious violations that involved the illegal and black market sale of protected game fish," he said, adding that they would be encouraging prosecution of the individuals in tribal court.

Rich Robinson, natural resources director for the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, said the cases are in tribal court. "We did not think the cases should be in federal court because we have our own laws here. … One of them is that you cannot sell or barter game fish."

Tunheim had ruled in November 2013 that the four federal indictments should be overturned because the 177-year-old Indian treaty trumped the legal case brought by the U.S. attorney's office.

Charges against four others were dropped last year at the request of federal prosecutors.

Two other cases were put on hold, awaiting the outcome of the 8th Circuit.

The three-judge panel included Diana Murphy of Minneapolis, who wrote the opinion.

Murphy, as a federal district judge, "tried one of the original treaty rights cases in the early 1990s before she became an appellate judge and is very familiar with the issues," said Engh. In that case, involving Lake Mille Lacs, he said, she issued a similar ruling.

Dave Laursen, secretary of the Leech Lake Association, which represents residents and businesses in the area, said he was disappointed. "The local DNR and local law enforcement officials spent a lot of time pursuing this case and the evidence, but apparently the judges decided to throw it out," he said.