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Tribal police break up attempted beer blockade, arrest three

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By CARSON WALKER / The Associated Press

Thursday, Jun 28, 2007 - 11:09:46 pm CDT

PINE RIDGE, S.D. — Tribal police Thursday shut down a volunteer blockade aimed at keeping beer out of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, where alcoholism is rampant, and arrested three organizers who refused to leave.

Only a few vehicles had been checked for alcohol by the time Oglala Sioux tribal police told the volunteers to stop because of safety concerns. After several minutes of arguing, police arrested actor and American Indian activist Russell Means; Duane Martin Sr.; and Frank LaMere, a Winnebago activist.

Martin was arrested after it appeared he fought with officers over a spear he was carrying. He spoke in Lakota as more than a half-dozen officers wrestled him to the ground.

Story Photo
Duane Marin Sr., right, argues his case with Oglala Sioux Tribe Police Chief James Twiss, Thursday at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, S.D.(AP)

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2005 special report: Standing at the Crossroads

The three were arrested on charges of disorderly conduct and obstruction of justice, said tribal police Chief James Twiss.

“You can ask only so long before you have to arrest them and get them into custody,” Twiss said.

“It looked like the violence was initiated by tribal police,” said Mark Vasina of Nebraskans for Peace. His group and Martin’s Strong Heart Civil Rights Movement staged the blockade.

About two dozen people were at Thursday’s blockade, but only four or five actually were stopping vehicles. About half the people there were reporters.

As many as 20 tribal officers were called in to break up the blockade, while about a dozen Nebraska law officers stood by in Whiteclay.

Alcoholism is rampant on the reservation, which bans alcohol, and the volunteers had hoped the blockade would help curtail bootlegging. Four stores in Whiteclay, a village just outside the 16,500-member reservation, sell about 4 million cans of beer a year, mostly to American Indians.

Blockade workers, wearing bright green construction vests, had planned to stop vehicles, ask occupants whether they had any alcohol and confiscate it if they did. They attempted a similar blockade last year, but it was abandoned when police raised safety concerns, and both sides agreed to work together to address the problem.

Beer cans litter reservation roads and the streets of Whiteclay. People loiter outside the stores. Some try to trade tools, electronics and other things for beer.

“I’m tired of my people dying. You’ve got 18-, 19-year-olds trading alcohol for sex,” said Martin, whose fellow organizer, Means, was a leader of the American Indian Movement and led the 1973 uprising at Wounded Knee, S.D. Means ran unsuccessfully for the Libertarian nomination for president in 1988.

Martin had indicated organizers didn’t need support from the tribal government, citing support of the Oglala Sioux’s traditional leader, Chief Oliver Red Cloud. But organizers had wanted law enforcers to take over the blockade to ensure it remained nonviolent.

Twiss said that he empathizes with the group’s mission but that he has to follow tribal law. He added that tribal police conduct at least 15 sobriety checkpoints on the reservation each year and plan to do one starting Friday through Wednesday — including the road between Whiteclay and the reservation.

Earlier, acting tribal police Capt. Wilmer Youngman said the searches the volunteers planned went beyond the authority of police. “We can’t even search vehicles” without having probable cause to believe a crime has been committed, he said.

Twiss said he told the organizers a year ago they needed to change tribal law and make the blockade legal — but they didn’t. “They had a whole year to do something legislatively,” Twiss said.


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az wrote on June 28, 2007 11:47 am:
" It's time for Nebraska to follow through with their promise and help end the illegal sale of alcohol at Whiteclay. There simply is not a legal place for the tribal residents to consume the alcohol. Johanns said years ago that the Nebraska State Patrol would work with the Tribal Police to end this practice....nothing has changed. It's a disgrace. "

 dl wrote on June 28, 2007 12:07 pm:
" az, It's not illegal to sell alcohol in Whiteclay.... "

 1 wrote on June 28, 2007 12:18 pm:
" let 'em drink "

 good grief! wrote on June 28, 2007 12:53 pm:
" It is not illegal to sell beer in Whiteclay. What members of the tribe do on Tribal Ground is indeed Tribal business-not Nebraska's. If illegal public consumption of beer occurs in Whiteclay, then stop it. As long as Nebraska law allows sale-sales should continue. It is no different than the many firework stands legally selling their wares in the burbs around Omaha. If Omaha wants to conduct searches or confiscations-within the law-so be it...... Too many people want to be able to tell me what I can and cannot do based on their perceptions of right and wrong. If I make a choice to break the rules-let me suffer the consequences. "

 Top Mine Off wrote on June 28, 2007 1:15 pm:
" Didn't the Federal Goverment give Prohibition a go, a few years back? "

 L wrote on June 28, 2007 1:21 pm:
" You can end the sale of alcohol in Whiteclay and it won't change anything. People who are desperate for alcohol aren't going to stop trying to get it just because it's not available in one town. I really do not mean to be disrespectful, but I don't understand why we have to protect these people from themselves. Alcoholics come from all ethnic backgrounds, but we're not trying to stop alcohol sales to Asian people or African American people or Caucasian people. Isn't it time that we asked people to be responsible for their own actions? "

 Tax Payer wrote on June 28, 2007 1:24 pm:
" I'm curious to see how this plays out. A business doing sale legally. Tribe members saying they will confiscate alcohol if the person has alcohol in their car. There are a lot of legal issues here which could lead to violating a person rights. This goes beyond the Gov. and the State Patrol.I think this is a court issues. I feel for the Native Americans who have a alcohol problem. I hope this can be resolved so all parties win. "

 HHmmm wrote on June 28, 2007 1:27 pm:
" How about they help themselves, instead of waiting for a handout from the government?! "

 that's the point wrote on June 28, 2007 1:43 pm:
" good grief, you make az's point...the illegal public consumption of beer in whiteclay is happening, and nothing is being done. look into how many tickets have been issued for breaking state liquor control laws and try to dispute that illegal activity is taking place. "

 Lee wrote on June 28, 2007 1:56 pm:
" Maybe Nebraska should put up a toll booth at the border and charge them to enter the State. We then could lower taxes. "

 Rick wrote on June 28, 2007 3:02 pm:
" Tax Payer, you need to look at a map. The Pine Ridge Reservation is in South Dakota. The Reservation is governed by the Ogalala Sioux who have SOVEREIGN rights under treaties. They have the right to prohibit alcohol from entering from another jurisdiction. I grew up in Sioux City and back when Iowa did not have commercial liquor stores (they were run by the state) many people would go to South Sioux City to purchase their alcohol. The Iowa Highway Patrol would stake out the parking lots of the liquor stores and stopped people who shopped there as soon as they entered Iowa. They would confiscate any alcoholic beverages. There is no legal issue to settle. "

 tim wrote on June 28, 2007 3:09 pm:
" how can the democrats support this blockade. its simply profiling at its finest. what happens to the out-of-state traveler from say kansas, going fishing in south dakota, with beer in his trunk gets stop. they dump it out. once again the tribe wants to make the problem someone else's instead of their own. "

 Gerard Harbison wrote on June 28, 2007 3:54 pm:
" The Democrat party characteristically supports all sorts of failed policies. It's no shock to see them supporting prohibition. As long as the Lakota do this on their side of the state line, I don't see where this is any business of Nebraska's. If we stop sales in Whiteclay, people will drive to Gordon or Chadron to buy booze, endangering Nebraskans if they return home drunk. The retailers in Whiteclay are performing a service for the rest of Northwestern Nebraska. "

 aa wrote on June 28, 2007 4:11 pm:
" we don't use the 'they'll just get it somewhere else' argument for other illegal activities. I have yet to hear anyone say "we're not going to close down that crack house', because they'll just get it down the road.' I'm sure the lack of action here has nothing to do with the fact that it's killing Natives. "

 DAAA wrote on June 28, 2007 4:12 pm:
" I didn't realize that someone with a proper NE liquor license could't sell alcohol. Sorry it's legal to sell alcohol in Whiteclay. "

 cry for help wrote on June 28, 2007 4:41 pm:
" The white man has done many atrocities to the natives, alcoholism is a direct product of the wrongs done to them. Since alcohol sales are banned by federal law on the reservation it IS a Nebraska issue since the town of Whiteclay is only there to provide alcohol to the reservation bootleggers. The only argument to be made is whether alchohol should be made legal by feds, that would at least give some sales tax to the reservation to be used for education and drug treatment programs, but then it's just a nasty circle. This is a feeble, petty, and dangerous attempt to bring the issue to the public eye again to help end the sad darfur-esque environment these people live in. "

 Former Gordonite wrote on June 28, 2007 4:50 pm:
" Nearly all of you are missing the point. Sale/possession of alcohol in Whiteclay is legal, yes. Smuggling it into the reservation is not. That is what the blockade, which will be in the reservation, will be trying to prevent. And legal though it may be, there is no reason on Earth to have 4 liquor stores in a village of 12 people, other than to exploit the rampant alcoholism and DEATHS that occur because of it. And because this exploitation is happening on Nebraska soil, Nebraska has a responsibility to stop it. Those of you who say "let em drink" apparently don't realize how sick, vulgar and racist your attitude is. "

 Mike wrote on June 28, 2007 5:29 pm:
" Tim, while it may be racial profiling it is also common sense. How many Caucasians drive through the reservation to get to their destination in S.D. Almost none and throw in the fact that it is illegal to have alcohol on the reservation whether you are white, black, or purple. When you are on the reservation you are subject to their laws. That is their nation that was set aside by the government. Their nation their rules. The Pine Ridge Reservation is fighting a multitude of problems; poverty and alcoholism are the visible results of those problems. They can use all the support that we can provide for them. I do not see the solution to problem as easy as shutting down Whiteclay. They are alcoholics they will get the alcohol even if they have to get in a car and drive to Rushville, Gordon, or Chadron. Now you have highways loaded with drunk drivers. Why are we not helping them to fight alcoholism? Why are we not helping them fight poverty and unemployment by providing them economic opportunities? There are other solutions out there. Ridding the region of Whiteclay is just a cosmetic band-aid. It will not stop the problems. "

 czne wrote on June 28, 2007 5:42 pm:
" Comments such as let em drink are just plain ignorant and show how much some people just don't care about others. People say that we don't keep alcohol from other minorities, but other minorities don't seem to have the same degree of alcohol problem that these people have. This place needs help and even though it is legal to sell alcohol in White Clay, it is completely immoral. Also, according to different treaties, isn't whiteclay actually a part of the reservation? People also don't understand that these people have been put up here in an area with no jobs and no hope- much as an inner city ghetto. The only difference is that in a ghetto there are options for employment, etc., on the Pine Ridge there are very few options except to turn to alcohol. "

 Our Fault wrote on June 28, 2007 6:35 pm:
" Our ancestors came and ravaged these people with disease, killed their buffalo, forced the white man's culture upon them, stole their land and then marched them off to reservations so that we could forget about their existence. No wonder they need a handout from the federal government, which they should receive and more. How about a little compassion for the original peoples of this country? "

 Tructh in Ks wrote on June 28, 2007 7:08 pm:
" If sales were eliminated in WHiteclay all that would change would be the price of booze on the rez!!They will getr it one way or another.People should quit denying the fact that right acroos the state line is the poorest county in the country with a high concentration of alcoholism. If not the price of their booze will increase or the quality will diminish.Mouthwash and hairspray sales will boom in surrounding areas. "

 aa wrote on June 28, 2007 7:15 pm:
" it is not about the actual sale, the establishments are making money on illegal activity, those off sale permits should be revoked based on violations of the liquor control commission rules. if this were a liquor store in lincoln, and the things that go on in Whiteclay were happening, they'd have their permits revoked within days. I'm sure this has nothing to do with the fact that the customers are native american. as far as the 'drive down the road' arguement, we don't use that arguement with other illegal activity...I've never heard 'we'll just let that meth house go, because if we close it, they'll just drive to the next one.. nice try. anybody know how many citations have been issued in Whiteclay the past 15 years? "

 Rushville Native in SD wrote on June 28, 2007 8:21 pm:
" Perhaps you don't know but the whole operation seems to have been shut down shortly after it began when the OST Police cited saftey as the issue for intervening and arrested Frank LaMere, Russell Means, and Duane Martin. The Nebraskans for Peace stayed on safe ground (Nebraska) to avoid arrest. White Clay hasn't changed much in the 60 year span of my life, but then it only one place where residents of the Pine Ridge Reservation go to purchase beer. You might be interested to know that Pine Ridge (OST) is the only tribe in South Dakota that has outlawed alcohol on tribal land and that is the only reason that the Federal Government enforces bootlegging laws there. "

 Ralph Thomas wrote on June 28, 2007 8:29 pm:
" The tribal government, in an apparent exercise of sovereignty, has prohibited alcohol within its borders. That part is good in a politically correct sort of way. And then there was reality. The first reality is this, Russell Means is hardly a poster child for any "cause du jur" anywhere. Unless there's another cartoon coming out. As I recall, he had a pre-arranged agreement with the police the last time he was arrested over there while nobody else did. Oh yes, and lest we forget, when Russell Means "led" one protest, the Whiteclay business that was looted and burned was the one that DIDN'T sell alcohol. These are factual reality, they happened. Another factual reality is this. Unless the people of Pine Ridge choose to stop drinking, nothing anyone does, be it protest or provide funding, will change the reality of Whiteclay. What the business owners are doing is legal in all 50 states. What the folks, including Russell Means, are doing is not. If the tribal police, acting at the behest of tribal law and/or ordinance conduct this blockade, then under the umbrella of sovereighty, it is legal. As it stands right now, sooner or later someone is going to take umbrage at someone (who also drinks) trying to take their alcohol away. If a "blockade" was illegal last time, it is illegal this time as well. "

 Top Mine off, start with a clue wrote on June 28, 2007 9:48 pm:
" Prohibition is something completely different than banning the illegal sale of alcohol to a reservation. Get a clue! "

 not you wrote on June 28, 2007 9:50 pm:
" top mine off: here's a newsflash, this isn't about YOU. show some respect. "

 Gerard Harbison wrote on June 28, 2007 11:08 pm:
" I have another project for Nebraskans for Peace. Casino gambling is illegal in Nebraska, but just over the border, in Rosebud, SD, is a casino where Nebraskans drive to gamble, sometimes gambling away their life savings and their children's future. Why aren't you blockading that? "

 Lets Get It Right wrote on June 29, 2007 4:14 am:
" The Sioux are not Native Americans. They simply immigrated to this continent before the Europeans did. The proper term is Earlier-Immigrant Americans. "

 Terry wrote on June 29, 2007 6:31 am:
" How 'bout this idea? Do away with the reservations, do away with the "welfare state" that they are, and assimilate the "Native Americans" into society. "

 Demo wrote on June 29, 2007 9:35 am:
" There is no mention of the democratic party in the article. Organizer S.D. Means is a Libertarian (that’s different than a Democrat). Organizers Russell Means and Duane Martin Sr. are American Indian activists (also different than Democrats). But by all means, don’t let the facts keep you from slinging the standard rhetoric of conservatives – “It must be the democrat's fault!” "

 GMP wrote on June 29, 2007 9:42 am:
" If it is legal to sell the alcohol, let them sell it. If, as other letters state, there is illegal activity going on AT the liquor stores, address this. If it is illegal to consume alcohol on the reservation, let the tribes deal with this, in any way they have to, as long as it is handled ON the reservation, be that car searching, etc. after the car is on their property. I realize there is a problem. It is obvious, from how long the problem has existed that a solution is not easy. But, whatever is done, please, no violence or breaking the law. "

 Chrias wrote on June 29, 2007 11:17 am:
" Hey, sounds good to me. Give me a beer and we can go road tripping.. "

 d wrote on June 29, 2007 11:29 am:
" Classic. I love the liberal stance of "It's the government's job to save us from ourselves" Blame the hardworking small-businessman (sorry, or business-woman, buisiness-person..) and capitalisim and if you disagree you are a racist. "

 dl wrote on June 29, 2007 11:59 am:
" Right on Mike!! As a former resident of Rushville you are exactly correct, if shutting down sales in Whiteclay would solve the problem then I'm all for it. But it won't solve the problem it will just move it. "

 Thieving conniving lawyer wrote on June 29, 2007 2:15 pm:
" This is pretty simple. There is tribal law, and for many things it is the law of the land on Indian reservations. The tribal elders have established a ban on alcohol on the reservation and the US government will adhere to it, just like it adheres to bans on alcohol in dry counties through the South. If Tribal Police want to confiscate alcohol from a car on the reservation, they can do so. "

 Yeah, I'm anti-PC wrote on June 29, 2007 2:18 pm:
" You know what the big problem they all have with this is? The beer is Pabst Blue Ribbon. "

 K.A.T.W.M. wrote on June 29, 2007 3:55 pm:
" If they were thinking they would sell the stuff on the res. so they could get by not paying Nebraska’s taxes and keep the money for themselves. I wonder how much of the liquor commission is funded by this area alone? And how much money are the liquor store owners contributing to alcohol awareness and prevention programs? We make the evil casinos on the river do it, why shouldn’t they? The people who support this kind of stuff are nothing short of enablers. Maybe I should open a liquor store up in your neighborhood, hold on, silly me we have rules against having too many of those kinds of establishments in the white folks neighborhoods. "

 T wrote on June 29, 2007 4:19 pm:
" 4 million cans of beer is 242 beers for every man, woman and child every year. Um, yeah, that's a problem. "

 NOT Our Fault wrote on June 29, 2007 7:14 pm:
" My Irish ancestors were exploited by the English. They were forced to abandon their clans and pagan religion, their lands were taken, they were left with nothing. Same story, different culture.. but we aren't alcoholics because of it. Pine Ridge does need help, in all kinds of ways. There is no simple solution.. but plz don't pin the blame on "our ancestors". Mine were in Ireland. "

 az wrote on June 29, 2007 11:32 pm:
" there is plenty of blame to go around...i'm not sure we need to assign blame. however, Nebraskans, enough with the 'let 'em drink, die, and make their own decisions'. We need to get together, and shut this down...it simply isn't right--and it's breaking our own law....not to mention the law of being human. Thanks to Frank and Russell for being willing to take this on. "

 Susie wrote on July 1, 2007 1:45 am:
" Good intentions .....wrong approach. However, I am more worried about illegal drugs such as meth. I am thinking it will slowly infest all towns, cities, and other societies in the United States. I hope families and societies can tackle this and get rid of the drug dealers before it is to late. "

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