Posted on 01/27/2013 1:12:13 PM PST by george76
The Hage family last Thursday filed a writ of certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court, appealing a claims court judgment that stripped away part of their $14 million award in a suit against the U.S. Forest Service over grazing rights in Monitor Valley.
Nye County Commissioner Lorinda Wichman said Tuesday she’s afraid the ruling by a court of appeals for the federal circuit overturning part of the judgment in the Wayne Hage case — that only hand tools are allowed to be used to maintain roads in the national forest — could jeopardize the $250,000 the county spent on the minor road inventory. The county inventoried more than 3,000 miles of minor roads to establish the public rights to use them.
District Attorney Brian Kunzi said he would file a friend of the court brief in support of the family of Wayne Hage, who died in June 2006.
Hage was a hero of the public lands movement ... Hage authored a book called “Storm over Rangelands.”
...
In the Hage case, Wichman said the appeals court reversal allowed the forest service to demand the Hages seek permission before they could access and maintain their rights of way unless they limited themselves to the use of hand tools.
“The Federal Circuit Court of Appeals overlooked well more than 100 years of local customs, laws and court decisions, including a 2005 decision by the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals and the claims court that recognized that no such permit could be required,” Wichman said reading the statement.
“This is not just a fight between solitary ranchers and the government. The ruling, if it stands, may impact virtually every major highway and water system in the West,”
(Excerpt) Read more at pvtimes.com ...
US Forest Service? Give the land to the individual states and retire the department.
Helen too.
Yes.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.