Operation Something Bruin: Winning and Losing

Back in May, I wrote of The Great Diversion.  I attempted to capture how attorneys and family members of some of those charged in Operation Something Bruin (OSB) were attempting to muddy the facts by diverting our attention to a variety of ancillary issues.  In that piece I pointed to the media dog piling with these misrepresentations and outright lies.

It is fascinating how we allow the media to twist the facts to support their viewpoint.  This week wrapped up a week-long trial involving three OSB defendants charged with felony Lacy Act violations.  On Monday 9/8/14, WLOS reporter Mike Mason reported that all three men were "Found not guilty by 11 jurors."  Mason failed to mention that two of the three were found guilty of misdemeanor Lacy Act violations which carries a potential penalty of one year imprisonment, a $100,000 fine, a loss of hunting privileges, and banishment from National Forests.

Geroldo Rivera
www.emmytvledgends.org

We shouldn’t expect much more of Mason.  In “gathering” fodder for a previous report Mason knocked down Sgt. Chad Arnold’s father, leading to assault charges being brought against Mason. Mason in turned alleged that Sgt. Arnold assaulted him though no charges were ever filed.  I suppose he envisions himself as an Asheville version of Geraldo Rivera.

Rusty McLean

Then there is Waynesville attorney Rusty McLean.  McLean has directly or indirectly represented several defendants in this case and other bear hunting incidents.  Most notably, McLean represented defendants in a Hyde County case where he contended that wildlife officers were trespassing on private property while investigating the violation.  The case wound its way through a series of appeals that led to case law clarifying that officers can enter onto property under the open fields and woods doctrine even though there are signs prohibiting trespass. 

From www.grnc.org

Grass Roots North Carolina and its president Paul Valone also joined the party by issuing “alerts” on 2/13/14 (Has Ruby Ridge Come to NC? ) and on 4/26/14 ("Something Bruin" Is Out of Hibernation).  These “alerts” are a call for members to copy and paste a message that was to be emailed to a variety of public officials.  Both contain inflammatory language that appeals to the far right.  Valone describes OSB as, “Heavily armed government agents storming family homes, entrapment, and false charges.”

And preceding all of this on January 18, 2014 was a public forum held at Swain County High School to air grievances about OSB and the manner in which the investigation was conducted.  Attending the meeting were N.C. Sen. Jim Davis, R-Franklin, N.C. Rep Joe Sam Queen, D-Waynesville, and Cherokee Chief Michell Hicks.  All three “pledged to look into the concerns and complaints that they had heard from people.”

The thing that angers (and saddens) me about the folks mentioned above is how it brings to mind accounts of how those in the mountains have been exploited over the years.  The Cherokees were forcibly removed by the government, in part because of gold discovered on their lands in Georgia.  Timber companies from around the world bought thousands of acres in the late 1800s and early 1900s from locals who had little idea of land or timber values.  They stripped the hillsides bare, leading to stream siltation and other environmental concerns before moving on to another location.

I love the people of the southern Appalachians.  They are true to their Scots-Irish/Native American roots – stubborn, fiercely independent, wary of outsiders, and feeling a strong connection to the land where they live.  Yet they are often their own worse enemies with a propensity for self-destruction.  The politicians, reporters, attorneys, rabble rousers and others have taken those sentiments and whipped the people into a frenzy - “The government is out to get you;” “I wouldn’t take that shit from anyone;” “The government stole this land from your people – it and everything on it belongs to you.” 

But this “support” is self-serving.  The politicians want votes.  In mountain counties, a handful of votes can swing an election.  WLOS and Mike Mason want to generate controversy because controversy equates to viewers and viewers bring in advertising revenue.  Paul Valone needs people to donate to the cause so “the cause” has to be put out there often whether it exists or not.  And Rusty McLean files motion after motion because billable hours puts money in his pocket.

In many ways, the officers most closely involved in this case and the defendants are cut from the same cloth – stubborn, a refusal to back down, and a passion for the resources.  While they may disagree on points of law, they are part of the same community.  Their kids go to school together and play on the same sports teams.  I recall an old logger talking about “fureigners to these mountains.”  I thought he was talking about someone from another country.  He meant anyone that wasn’t from right there in the mountains (including me).  His point was people from outside that community (or those with desires outside the community) change everything.

As I have mulled over the most recent events of OSB, I thought back to a conversation I had with a wildlife violator from Graham County in the early days my career.  I charged him under similar circumstances two years in a row for taking deer during the closed season.  While at the magistrate’s office he told me, “This is all just a game.  I play half and you play half.  Sometimes I win – sometimes you do.  It ain’t nothing personal.”  The thing I remember most about that conversation is how he wasn’t upset that he was charged.  He wasn’t even upset with me.  Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose. 

It is often said that there are no winners or losers in these situations.  In Operation Something Bruin that is not exactly true.  In this case those profiting are obvious.  They are reporting the news, being quoted in newspaper articles, lining their pockets with cash and turning a bear hunting investigation into a gun rights issue.

Conservation of our natural resources goes beyond winning or losing.  It boils down to an issue of stewardship.  I am proud to be associated with the officers in this case.  They are true stewards.