BLM OFFICER DETAINS FAMILY 5 HOURS FOR PICKING UP
ROCKS
On January 3, 2004, two Bureau Of Land Management agents
detained four adult residents of Whetstone and their three children for five
hours for picking up rocks. The incident, which led to all three adults being
ticketed for illegally removing archeological resources, occurred at the
Charleston Road Bridge, intersecting the San Pedro Riparian Natural
Conservation area. Rachel Howard, Steven Howard and Jim Brown face fines of up
$2,000 and possible jail time if convicted of removing archeological resources
from a protected area. The three adults must appear for a mandatory court date
in March at the Federal Building in Tucson.
Bill
Childress, Manager of the Riparian field office in Sierra Vista, Arizona offers
this information.
“Our officers are in charge of protecting public
lands. We have had eight incidents since September of people in violation of
removing artifacts from our sector of the San Pedro Riparian area. We have
incidents all the time, and it’s a constant issue for our officers to
educate the public about the rules. We have so few officers that it is always
just being in the right place at the right time,” Childress told The
Tumbleweed in a phone interview.
Childress continued, “People always take liberties when they are
hiking; they think, out of sight, out of mind. It’s important for the
public to know about these rules. It is a constant chore to educate the
community. This is a good time to remind people that it is a felony to collect
or remove artifacts from federal lands of any kind; that includes BLM and U.S.
Forest Service Lands. Even if the land is owned privately you can’t touch
the resources and you must have the proper permits to conduct
research.”
Childress stated that he did not have all the details of the incident
but was confident Officer Cook acted appropriately. “Cook knows a great deal about the
area and typically shares this with the public. We hope to develop some
interpretive guided tours of the area led by some of the officers who work the
area. This would help the public and develop a relationship with the
community,” said Childress.
“I knew officer
Larson, we had met before and he’s really easy to talk to – but I
couldn’t believe this guy Cook, he could have been a lot nicer. I mean, we
had small children with us, they wouldn’t let my kids or me go to the
bathroom, my kids were hungry dirty and tired from the long hike and then we
had to wait there for five hours,” recalled an exasperated and emotional
Rachel Howard.
As Brown and the
Howards’ retold the story, they realized they learned a lesson the hard
way; “I think I realize that not knowing the law basically makes us all a
criminal. There were no signs, no warnings, nothing to alert people they were
committing a serious crime,” explained Jim Brown. The group parked on the
south side of Charleston in the paved parking area at the bridge. The three
adults admit they were out for a hike with their children who love to collect
rocks. “You know how kids are –they love to pick up everything. My
kids love to collect rocks, especially my daughter.”
“We were going to see the picture in the rocks -
that’s what I called it for my kids, of the rock formation with
pictographs, “explained Rachel Howard. We hiked to the area called
Millville; we reached the area about 1 p.m. and we walked around the area for
almost an hour. On our way back we noticed someone dressed in hunting type
clothes he had a mask on and seemed to be watching us,” Howard recalled.
Steven Howard shares what happened next. “When we
reached the lot he (Officer Larson) was waiting for us. Well the one agent came
across the parking lot at us and said, my buddy (partner) saw this stuff in the
back of your friend’s truck and he wants you to wait here until he gets
back. We didn’t know what to do at then other than just do what the
officer asked, we didn’t know what we had done for this to happen. It took
45 minutes for him (officer Grady Cook) to arrive at the parking lot,”
Steven told The Tumbleweed.
In the meantime Rachel and Steven engaged in small talk
with Officer Larson while waiting for Cook’s arrival on the scene. Jim
Brown, his wife Crystina, their daughter Donna, age 7, Steven and Rachel Howard
and their two children Joshua, age 8, and daughter Tristen, age 7, were also
forced to empty their pockets and had backpacks searched. “The children
finally fell asleep in the cars as they were forced to wait for five hours,
past dinner time, they had nothing to eat and they were hungry; I asked the
officers if I could take my kids home and they said no!, this is a very serious
matter. That’s not right,” said Howard.
“Here’s a situation, we go to do something
with our kids, as a family. Instead of having my kids sit in front of the TV,
our family likes to go out hiking and enjoy nature. Then we run into a jerk
like this and now my kids are afraid of police officers from this one terrible
incident. They kept asking, why are the police so mean, and they wondered, were
we going to be arrested and have to go to jail?”
“Most
Likely the officers were alerted by the articles in the back of the
truck,” said Bill Childress.
The suspicious articles in the back of Browns truck were books on
pictographs and Indian culture books, shovels and a screen box, the kind that
could be used in sifting dirt. (note: Cook took all
items including books. rt)
If you’re a person who likes to know the rules then
pay attention to the rest of this story – it may save you from a
strong-arm run-in with federal law enforcement agencies.
During this investigation The Tumbleweed spoke with
dozens of other local residents who share the same frustration about speed
traps and “over the top” - “in your face” type encounters
with BLM Rangers. Some have had enough; some of the people interviewed said
they plan on filing complaints with the department.
What you may think of as public lands, are not that at
all. The “lands” belong to the federal government. And they like to
remind you of that fact. Typically, the public, think of these officers as
ambassadors, or nature and history docents. However, a dramatic increase in
criminal activity on public owned (federal) lands, has led to officers of BLM
taking a much tougher approach to policing the lands. At this point it seems,
at least initially, that they approach everyone they encounter, with suspicion.
In Cochise County the border is an acute national
security problem that invites crime from around the world. Hundreds of
thousands of acres of public lands - National Parks, BLM and state lands
stretch along the Arizona border with Mexico, yet agents are told not to
approach groups of migrants and drug dealers, they are instructed to call in
other agencies, namely Border Patrol to assist.
The
public assumes the agents are assigned to act as stewards of the lands and
natural resources not necessarily a bad thing when it comes to those who wish
to trash the land and who wish to rob historical sites. It is a shame to think
we need a special police force to insure the lands are protected
from citizens. Be careful of walking on federal lands; our government will
protect the land from its citizens with much more fervor than it will its
international borders from an invasion of people from foreign lands. It is up
to you to know the rules; ignorance is not an excuse.
The San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area,
containing about 40 miles of the Upper San Pedro River is managed to protect
and enhance the desert riparian ecosystem. The word riparian refers to an area
where plants and animals thrive because of an availability of water, either at
or near the soil surface. The San Pedro Riparian NCA is known internationally
for its bird life that attracts thousands of birdwatchers from all over the
world each year. More than 100 species of breeding birds and another 250
species of migrant and wintering birds occur in the area, representing roughly
half the number of known breeding species in North America.
The area is also
heavily traveled by illegal aliens and drug smugglers who damage plant life and
leave thousands of pounds of trash and human waste in their wake. Many visitors
to the same area have complained about being startled by groups of people who
have illegally entered the United States. It seems rock hounds are more of a
threat and are dealt with aggressively. BLM spokesperson Bill Childress stated
that” rockhounds” or collectors really should know where they can and
should know they cannot remove artifacts. Some sties even require permits for
photographing or other research type studies.
The BLM also gives these suggestions and warnings to the
public and to collectors on their website. http://www.az.blm.gov/tfo/index.htm
“Rockhounding is the collection of reasonable amounts of mineral specimens, rocks, semi-precious gems,
petrified wood and invertebrate fossils. Invertebrate fossils are the remains
of animals that didn't have bones such as shellfish, corals, trilobites and
crinoids. The material collected must not be sold or bartered. Arizona has many
localities and varieties of collecting material. Not all varieties are found on
public lands.
Collecting
of mineral and fossil resources is prohibited in certain areas being managed
under special designation to protect their scientific and natural values, such
as Research Natural Areas.
You
may not collect any artifacts, ancient or historical, on public lands without a
permit. This includes arrowheads or flakes, pottery or potsherds, mats, rock
art, old bottles or pieces of equipment and buildings. These items are part of
our national heritage and scientists are still learning much from them. Human
burial remains on both public and private land are protected by federal and
state law from being collected.”
Rocks,
minerals and semiprecious gemstones may be collected on public lands managed by
the BLM without charge or permit as long as:
1.
The specimens are for personal use and are not collected for commercial
purposes or bartered to commercial dealers.
2.
You may collect reasonable amounts of specimens. In Arizona, BLM sets the
"reasonable" limits for personal use as up to 25 pounds per day, plus one
piece, with a total limit of 250 pounds per year. These limits are for mineral
specimens, common invertebrate fossils, semiprecious gemstones, other rock, and
petrified wood.
4.
Collection does not occur in developed recreation sites or areas, unless
designated as a rockhounding area by BLM.
5.
Collection is not prohibited or restricted and posted.
6.
Collection, excavation or removal are not aided with motorized or mechanical
devices, including heavy equipment or explosives. Metal detectors are
acceptable, with the exception of the San Pedro National Conservation
Area.
BLM
Arizona manages some of Arizona's best-preserved prehistoric and historic
sites, which span the human occupation in North America. These include two
mammoth kill sites, remnants of a Spanish military fort, and Indian dwellings
more than 1,000 years old. Also, more than 514,000 acres of Arizona public
lands have been inventoried with 8,470 properties recorded.
Any
individual or organization wanting to perform specific archeological or
paleontological fieldwork, such as survey, excavation or site conservation,
following the receipt of their approved Cultural Resource Use Permit.
This form requests specific information on the location, schedule and nature of
the archeological fieldwork and allows BLM to communicate specific constraints
on a project type, schedule or location. An approved Field Use
Authorization might notify permittees of seasonal road closures near the
project area, advise them of potentially conflicting activities, such as game
hunting near the project area, require permittees to avoid sensitive species
habitat near the project area, or advise permittees on seasonal fire
restrictions.
BLM
agents can often be seen lurking along roadsides near the San Pedro River in
Cochise County, Arizona. Now we know they mean business. Local residents should
consider the consequences when entering state and federal lands. These lands
are protected by many rules and regulations; be sure and check the BLM and
other government websites. Keeping public lands in the hands of the public is
fine as long as the public keeps their hands off the land. This incident proves
that activities as innocent as a child picking up pretty rocks, can get you in
big trouble.
February, 19,2004
By Chris Simcox
Tombstone Tumbleweed