Standing Rock citizens sue county over #NoDAPL road blockade

Monday, October 29, 2018  

Two citizens of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and a member of the clergy have filed a lawsuit against authorities who shut down a key highway during the height of the #NoDAPL movement in North Dakota.

The plaintiffs are Cissy Thunderhawk, the owner of a business on the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation; Waste'Win Young, a resident of the reservation and a participant in the #NoDAPL movement; and the Rev. John Floberg, who leads a church on the reservation. They allege authorities in Morton County violated their rights by shutting down Highway 1806, preventing them from getting to and from the reservation and to and from the massive #NoDAPL encampment.

"Defendants intentionally made travel to and from the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation and the camps near the Cannonball River as unnecessarily unpleasant and dangerous as possible so as to deter (pipeline opponents), with whom they disagree, from lawfully pursuing their constitutional rights to travel, assemble, pray and express their viewpoints," the October 18 complaint reads.

The plaintiffs also named TigerSwan, a security firm that provided services to the wealthy backers of the Dakota Access Pipeline, as a defendant. The complaint notes that pipeline employees were regularly allowed access to Highway 1806 while those from the reservation, as well as supporters of the #NoDAPL movement, were denied.

The road was fully reopened in March 2017, according to the lawsuit. By that time, the Trump administration had already approved the final portion of the $3.8 billion crude oil pipeline.

A federal judge in June of that year ruled that the decision was flawed because it didn't take tribal objections, including concerns about treaty rights and water resources, into account. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has since issued a revised decision that once again approves the final crossing near Standing Rock.

The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe have since been given access to the document, following a long period in which it was kept under wraps in Washington, D.C. But until further redactions are made, Indian Country and the public are still being kept in the dark.

The pipeline became fully operational on June 1, 2017. The wealthy backers are looking at the possibility of raising the volume of oil moved from 500,000 barrels to 570,000 barrels per day, The Bismarck Tribune reported.

The pipeline's permit in North Dakota allows up to 600,000 barrels of oil to be transported per day, The Associated Press reported.

TigerSwan, County Sheriff Sued Over Road Blockade During Dakota Access Pipeline Protests DeSmogBlog October 28, 2018)
Tribe members, priest sue over highway shutdown during N.D. pipeline protest (The Associated Press October 23, 2018)
Company gauges interest for boosting Dakota Access capacity (The Associated Press October 22, 2018)
Dakota Access expansion takes step forward (The Bismarck Tribune October 19, 2018)

Tribes finally given access to Dakota Access Pipeline decision (October 4, 2018)
Dakota Access Pipeline decision still missing in action (September 24, 2018)
Documentary follows 'Warrior Women' through major Indian movements (September 19, 2018)
Standing Rock Sioux Tribe still waiting on Dakota Access decision (September 18, 2018)
Dakota Access Pipeline decision still missing in action a week later (September 7, 2018)
Hard work 'in the trash': Standing Rock Sioux Tribe slams Trump on Dakota Access (September 4, 2018)
A return to frontier justice? Red Fawn Fallis locked up for #NoDAPL incident (August 20, 2018)
Trump administration delays Dakota Access Pipeline decision again (August 8, 2018)
Tribes await updated decision on Dakota Access Pipeline (August 6, 2018)
A 'political prisoner': Red Fawn Fallis takes the fall for #NoDAPL incident (July 31, 2018)
Red Fawn Fallis won't appeal sentence for #NoDAPL incident (July 24, 2018)
'I knew I wasn't guilty': #NoDAPL activist acquitted in North Dakota (July 16, 2018)
Red Fawn Fallis sentenced to nearly five years for #NoDAPL incident (July 13, 2018)
Dakota Access sued for failing to sell ranch at Standing Rock (July 11, 2018)
Dakota Access Pipeline study still not finished after more than a year (June 12, 2018)
Security firm hired by Dakota Access still won't admit wrongdoing (May 16, 2018)
Elizabeth Cook-Lynn: An Indian man walks into court and asks a judge to do the right thing (April 20, 2018)
Graham Lee Brewer: What we learned about #NoDAPL and accountability (April 16, 2018)
Albert Bender: Oil continues to flow through 'genocidal' Dakota Access Pipeline (April 9, 2018)
YES! Magazine: An 'awakening' emerges from Standing Rock (March 28, 2018)
Trump administration blames tribes for delay in new Dakota Access study (March 21, 2018)
Jenni Monet: What the movement at Standing Rock gave the world (March 16, 2018)
Standing Rock Sioux Tribe warns of 'same mistakes' with DAPL study (March 7, 2018)
Oscars see a bit of diversity on stage with Native presenter and performance (March 5, 2018)
Republican investigation links Russian trolls to #NoDAPL movement (March 1, 2018)
Sylvia Chi: Indigenous activists lead energy divestment movement (February 19, 2018)
Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe demands consultation on DAPL study (February 9, 2018)
Red Fawn Fallis stays jailed for #NoDAPL gun shooting incident (February 6, 2018)
Woman injured in #NoDAPL clash sues government for evidence (February 6, 2018)
Red Fawn Fallis enters guilty plea for #NoDAPL gun shooting incident (January 23, 2018)
Native Sun News Today: 'Water Protectors' film heralds unsung Lakota heroes (January 15, 2018)
Native Sun News Today: Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe raises funds for water (January 10, 2018)
Albert Bender: The original genocide continues with the Dakota Access Pipeline (November 16, 2017)