Contact: Tasha Moro, NLG Communications Director
communications@nlg.org | 212-679-5100, ext. 15

CANNON BALL, ND—The Water Protector Legal Collective (WPLC; formerly Red Owl), an initiative of the National Lawyers Guild (NLG), strongly condemns the flagrant civil and human rights violations committed by Morton County law enforcement last night against unarmed Standing Rock Water Protectors. The standoff lasted more than five hours in freezing temperatures (26-degrees Fahrenheit), during which police deployed water cannons, rubber bullets, Long Range Acoustic Devices (LRADs), teargas, and flash-bang grenades against Water Protectors and members of the press. The attack resulted in 167 injuries—including at least one cardiac arrest, one seizure, and mass hypothermia. One 13-year-old girl was shot in the face with a rubber bullet, and at least 20 people were sent to the emergency room with serious injuries. WPLC/NLG Legal Observers on the scene reported many people temporarily lost consciousness from being shot with such “less lethal” munitions. The Standing Rock and Cheyenne River Sioux Tribes provided Emergency Medical Services, which Water Protector Dallas Goldtooth of the Indigenous Environmental Network called “ridiculous,” noting that such EMS “should be the responsibility of Morton County.”

Last night, WPLC attorney Angela Bibens described the horrifying scene: “[Law enforcement] deployed 20 mace canisters in a small area in less than five minutes, to the point where people have lost bowel function. At least one seizure has been witnessed at the front lines by our legal observation team. There have been people vomiting from the exposure to the mace. The water cannon has been mixed with the mace, and so even our legal observers have been exposed and are trying to deal with that while they’re doing up their notes. And canisters were shot at the medic area at the front line. There is at least one woman who has a broken kneecap. At least one elder went into cardiac arrest and was revived through CPR at the front line by medics.”

The attack began around 6 PM yesterday, while Water Protectors attempted to peacefully remove two military vehicles that had been blocking Highway 1806 since October 27, ironically, in an effort to clear the path providing the most direct route from the Oceti Sakowin camp to Bismarck, ND, for emergency services vehicles. The Morton County Sheriff’s Department made unfounded claims of “very aggressive” behavior and an “ongoing riot” by Water Protectors, and falsely claimed that the water cannons were deployed in response to fires set by Water Protectors on Highway 1806.

The police attack comes shortly after a local judge dismissed trumped-up felony charges against 15 Water Protectors last Thursday, citing failure by the District Attorney’s office to provide sufficient evidence of “Conspiracy to Endanger by Fire.” Additional hearings are set for December 5. The WPLC continues its months-long work on the ground in North Dakota, providing Water Protectors with legal representation, jail support, legal observers, and other direct legal assistance.

Concerned members of the public are strongly encouraged to call local and federal agencies to demand (1) immediate end to the construction of the $3.8 billion Dakota Access Pipeline, (2) a full investigation into abuses by law enforcement, and (3) dropping the felony charges against Water Protectors arising from the October 27 police raid on the camp.

White House: 202-456-1414
White House Situation Room, 202-456-9431
North Dakota Governor’s Office: 701-328-2200
Morton County Sheriff’s Office: 701-667-3330
Morton County State’s Attorney’s Office: 701-667-3350
Army Corps of Engineers Bismarck Office 701-255-0015

Donations to support the Water Protector Legal Collective may be made at fundrazr.com/campaigns/11B5z8 or nlg.org/donate/waterprotectorlegal for tax-deductible contributions. For updates, visit their website at waterprotectorlegal.org, and  follow them at Facebook.com/WaterProtectorLegal, Twitter @WaterProtectUs.

PHOTO: Police teargas Water Protectors on Highway 1806, November 20, 2016. (Photo: Elizabeth Hoover via Instagram @lizhoover.)

Contact: Tasha Moro, NLG Communications Director
communications@nlg.org | 212-679-5100 ext. 15

BISMARCK, ND—On Thursday, Burleigh County Judge Cynthia Feland dismissed felony charges against 15 Water Protectors arrested on October 27 who were praying or protesting near the route of the Dakota Access Pipeline. Even by police accounts, all but a couple people who may have been provocateurs, were not involved with setting hay bales on fire some distance from the main protest site. Despite this, all 147 Water Protectors arrested that day were charged with the felony, “Conspiracy to Endanger by Fire.” The court found that the prosecutor had presented no evidence that any of the individuals charged had conspired to set any fires.

“The Water Protectors were held for 48 hours or more, forced to removed outer layers of clothing, crowded into freezing chain link cages, and denied food, water and bathrooms for long periods,” said Brandy Toelupe, attorney with the Water Protector Legal Collective (WPLC; formerly Red Owl), an initiative of the National Lawyers Guild. “They were strip searched, and taken to jails all over North Dakota,” she added.

Because of the felony charges, the Water Protectors’ bond was set at $1500 cash and they faced prison terms of up to five years. Had there not been a crowd-funded bail fund, many would have remained in jail for weeks. By alleging a “conspiracy,” State’s Attorney Gabrielle Goter attempted to impose harsh consequences on the Water Protectors absent any evidence of their involvement in the fire. No individual defendant was identified doing anything specific.

Judge Feland ruled on her own motion that the prosecution failed to present sufficient facts in its affidavit showing probable cause that any of the defendants before the court, or any of the 147 arrested and charged on October 27, had committed the “Conspiracy to Endanger by Fire” felony.

“The Affidavit supporting the information however provides no specifically named defendants who committed this crime and how and when they each committed it…. In addition, the affidavit does not explain how the defendants agreed to commit the crime. The case law is well-established that in order to provide sufficient probable cause, the State must show that a crime has been committed and the accused is probably guilty of committing it,” read the court order.

“While the Water Protectors and their families are relieved by Judge Feland’s decision, State’s Attorney Gabrielle Goter should not recharge these cases and be reprimanded for deliberately overcharging 147 people with felonies that she knew she could not prove,” added Toelupe. “Overcharging is a dangerous and misleading strategy. It subjects people to preemptive punishment through detention and high bail, and intimidates people from engaging in First Amendment activity. It also misleads the public about what’s being prosecuted.”

The WPLC has been on the ground for months providing Water Protectors with legal representation, jail support, legal observers, and other direct legal assistance. WPLC members were in court monitoring the proceeding and were representing some of the Water Protector defendants.

The next court date is set for December 5, when more than 100 additional felony cases from the October 27 action will be heard. All are expected to be dismissed. Felony cases from actions on other dates will also be heard at that time.

Donations to support the Water Protector Legal Collective may be made at fundrazr.com/campaigns/11B5z8 or nlg.org/donate/waterprotectorlegal for tax-deductible contributions.

For updates, follow them at Facebook.com/WaterProtectorLegal and Twitter @WaterProtectUs.

Contact: Tasha Moro, NLG Communications Director
212-679-5100, ext. 15# | communications@nlg.org

BISMARCK, ND—Today, the National Lawyers Guild (NLG), in conjunction with the ACLU of North Dakota, sent Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and North Dakota Open Records Act requests to multiple state and federal agencies in response to the surveillance and arrests of the Native-led Water Protectors attempting to stop construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL). In an affront to First Amendment rights, Water Protectors and allies have been continuously surveilled by low-flying planes, helicopters, and drones, and have had local cell phone communications jammed and possibly recorded. Dozens of local and out-of-state law enforcement have been called in, maintaining a heavily militarized presence at the site in an effort to intimidate activists and chill dissent.

Water Protectors have come to expect surveillance and interference from law enforcement. Kandi Mossett, of the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation, and the Extreme Energy & Just Transition Campaign Coordinator with the Indigenous Environmental Network says: “My three-year-old daughter and I are beginning to get used to being awakened by the helicopter and airplane as they fly over camp in the morning. She says, ‘Momma look!’ all excited, as she is too innocent to understand they were sent to spy on us for protecting the water for her and generations to come.”

Despite remaining peaceful in their resistance, more than 140 people have been arrested at the protest site since beginning in August, with the Morton County Sherriff’s Department leveling trespassing and riot charges against Water Protectors and journalists. Earlier this week, finding no probable cause, a judge dropped the riot charge that had been brought against award-winning journalist Amy Goodman of Democracy Now! for her September 3 coverage of the protests and the violent response by a private security firm hired by the DAPL company.

As civil liberties violations have continued to escalate over the last six weeks, the Indigenous-led resistance against the DAPL continues. More than 1,000 Water Protectors, allies, and supporters have descended on Standing Rock, constituting the largest gathering of Native American Nations in modern US history. The Red Owl Legal Collective of the NLG has been providing bond, Legal Observers, and legal support for arrestees.

The NLG and ACLU of North Dakota are requesting all surveillance information and communications regarding the DAPL protests from April 1 to the present from the following federal and local agencies:

Federal Bureau of Investigation
Department of Homeland Security
US Army Corps of Engineers
Bureau of Indian Affairs
Federal Emergency Management Agency
Department of Justice
ND National Guard
ND Highway Patrol
Morton County Sheriff
Burleigh County Sheriff
Emmons County Sheriff
Cass County Sheriff
Fargo Police
Bismarck Police
Mandan Police
Fort Yates Police

With these open records requests, the NLG and the ACLU of North Dakota seek to promote transparency and challenge any violations of constitutional rights.

FROM #NoDAPL NLG LEGAL TEAM IN NORTH DAKOTA

Contact: NLG Attorneys
Bruce Ellison 605-858-1850
Jeff Haas 505-469-0714
Rachel Lederman 415-350-6496

BISMARCK, ND—North Dakota U.S. District Court Judge Daniel L. Hovland today dissolved a temporary restraining order against Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Chairman Dave Archambault II and a number of named and unnamed participants in protests against the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL). Dakota Access LLP, the consortium building the DAPL, applied for the restraining order on an ex parte basis on August 15, citing demonstrations earlier in August that effectively shut down construction near the Oahe Crossing in North Dakota, where the DAPL is planned to cross the Missouri River and a dammed portion of the river known as Lake Oahe. The federal court granted the ex parte restraining order the following day, enjoining Mr. Archambault and others, including Standing Rock Sioux Tribe members Valerie Wolf Necklace and Clifton Verle Howell, from “unlawfully interfering in any way” with pipeline construction.

Valerie Wolf Necklace and Clifton Verle Howell, represented by the National Lawyers Guild legal team that is defending the Camp Sacred Stone water protectors, argued that the restraining order was an unconstitutional prior restraint on fundamental First Amendment rights to freedom of speech and assembly and free expression of religion, was not supported by competent evidence, and that Dakota Access does not have standing to prohibit water protectors from praying at and protecting ancestral sacred sites on public or private land. As described in three declarations by expert Tim Mentz filed in support of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s lawsuit for injunctive relief against DAPL^[1], many Lakota / Dakota sacred sites lie within and near the pipeline corridor, including burial sites and other historic sacred sites that are used for prayer and spiritual connection and are vital to the religious life and heritage of the Lakota / Dakota people.

The water protectors deny that they have engaged in any unlawful or violent acts. “I participated in these actions to protect my family’s right to hunt, fish, and swim in clean water. I want my kids to be proud that we stood up to protect our source of clean drinking water,” said Clifton Verle Hollow. “I am pleased that the court has dropped its order preventing us from doing what we have traditionally done.”

After sacred sites were identified in court filings in the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s lawsuit in the Washington D.C. federal court on September 2, Dakota Access bulldozed many of the sites on September 3, bringing in private security guards who maced and unleashed attack dogs on unarmed, peaceful water protectors. As Judge Hovland recognized in his September 16 order, although the D.C. District Court subsequently denied the Tribe’s request for an injunction stopping construction, on September 9, the United States Department of Justice, the Department of the Army and the Department of the Interior released a joint statement recognizing that “important issues raised by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and other tribal nations and their members regarding the Dakota Access pipeline specifically, and pipeline-related decision-making generally, remain” and halted construction of the Oahe Crossing on federal land, also requesting that Dakota Access stop construction on the privately owned land in that area until the federal government determines whether it will need to reconsider any of its previous decisions to allow construction of the Oahe Crossing. However, Dakota Access has continued construction.

North Dakota District Judge Hovland’s September 16 order dissolves any federal court prohibition on protests against the pipeline and leaves it up to local authorities and the criminal courts to deal with those accused of breaking the law. Meanwhile, local authorities are now charging as felonies, nonviolent actions of protesters including peacefully locking themselves to stationary earth movers. “Although the judge went out of his way to show his disdain for many of the water protectors, he also became aware that this was a political controversy that he likely could not control and the mechanism of an injunction was unwieldy and likely ineffective in light of the determination of those resisting the pipeline construction over sacred sites and threatening the water supply,” said NLG attorney Jeff Haas.

Photo: Water protectors at Standing Rock, courtesy of Rachel Lederman.