PACIFIC LEGAL FOUNDATION TAKES PILGRIM FAMILY CASE TO 9TH CIRCUIT (wilderness property rights)

SierraTimes.com ^ | Dec. 29, 03 | Sierra Times

[freedomdefender]

PACIFIC LEGAL FOUNDATION TAKES PILGRIM FAMILY CASE TO THE NINTH CIRCUIT The Sierra Times

PRECEDENT-SETTING CASE ASKS COURT TO AFFIRM THE RIGHTS OF ALASKANS TO ACCESS FEDERAL LANDS

SAN FRANCISCO, CA; December 24, 2003: Pacific Legal Foundation filed an emergency motion and notice of appeal with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Wednesday in a highly publicized case that pits an Alaska wilderness family against the National Park Service. PLF is asking the court to grant the Pilgrim family emergency access to the only viable road to their property, which the Park Service closed last April. The case has precedent-setting value as it asks the court to consider Revised Statute 2477, which guarantees the use of existing rights-of-way or roads across federal lands. These rights-of-way have long been recognized and protected by Congress, and were reaffirmed by the Bush administration earlier this year.

PLF also is asking the court to grant access to the Pilgrims under ANILCA, the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. According to PLF, ANILCA was the product of an intense legislative battle between those who wanted to turn millions of acres of Alaska into national parks and the majority of Alaska's citizens who opposed the plan. The compromise allowing ANILCA's passage was that the public would get the new parks, but Alaskans would get special rules to allow their continued access to their property in the vast new preservation units.

"The Pilgrim family home is on their property surrounded by a national park, and the Park Service is prohibiting them from accessing their land in violation of long-standing laws enacted specifically to prevent this kind of government abuse," said Russ Brooks, an attorney with Pacific Legal Foundation.

At issue in the case is the Park Service's closure of the 15-mile-long McCarthy-Green Butte road, which has been used since at least 1922. The road traverses federal land and provides the only overland access to property owned by Robert Hale, commonly known as Papa Pilgrim, and the 16 members of his family. Pilgrim purchased the 410-acre parcel in the Spring of 2002, with the understanding that the road connecting it to town would be continuously accessible so that food and other provisions could be carried in by vehicle. In April 2003, the Pilgrims' house and most of the family's belongings were destroyed by a fire.

The Park Service closed the road to traffic a few days after the fire, making it impossible for the Pilgrim family to bring in heavy materials and supplies to rebuild their home and survive subzero weather-access that is only possible with mechanized travel that the Park Service stopped. As a result, the Pilgrims have been forced to live in an uninsulated mine building in Acrtic winter temperatures for months.

"The Pilgrims' situation is just about the worst case scenario that could be contemplated under the laws that were put in place to protect the access rights of Alaskans," said Brooks. "They have literally been driven from their home and can't get sufficient supplies to their family because the federal government arbitrarily and illegally closed the only road to their property."

"We're holding out optimism that the Ninth Circuit will grant emergency access to the Pilgrims so they can survive the winter and the family can get out of the inhumane situation that the Park Service has put them in," said Brooks. "We're also hopeful that the court will take this opportunity to affirm the access rights of all Alaskans to federal land that has long been guaranteed to them under the law."

[Enterprise]

Gummit pissants hard at work. Makes ya feel proud!

[cake_crumb]

"We're holding out optimism that the Ninth Circuit will grant emergency access to the Pilgrims so they can survive the winter and the family can get out of the inhumane situation that the Park Service has put them in."

I hope their optimism is not misplaced...but it's the 9th Circus they're depending on.

[PistolPaknMama]

The Pilgrims' situation is just about the worst case scenario that could be contemplated

I'd have to say amen to that.

[Libertarianize the GOP]

ping

[ridesthemiles]

I hope their optimism is not misplaced...but it's the 9th Circus they're depending on.

Actually I am hoping the 9th circus does the usual and we get this immediately to the Supreme Court. We need this solved once and for all as soon as possible.
This is just one example of the Feds trying to push legal landowners off their lands which are now surrounded by federal land. Some of these properties have been privately owned for over 100 years, and the new crop on employees/ infiltrators in the Fed park systems are trying to push out all private property owners.
The original railroad land holdings were divided up in one mile square parcels, and set out in a basic checkboard pattern, selling every other section to the public, every other one to the feds. Look on a good Wyoming map to see a classic example of what I am talking about.

[reg45]

If the National Park Service is going to close the only road to the Pilgrim's property, then the NPS should provide free helicopter service.

[joesnuffy]

The worse parts was the Feds lying about the family to the locals...
The Feds went to this family's neighbors and told them that their music instrument cases really held thousands of rounds of ammo and assault rifles..
Almost as if the Feds were painting a picture of a terrorist family...so if an armed confrontation went down...they already had their alibis lined up

[farmfriend]

Rights, farms, environment ping.

Let me know if you wish to be added or removed from this list.
I don't get offended if you want to be removed.

[concentric circles]

Anchorage Daily News report:
~Pilgrims vs. Park Service
~Pilgrims Vs. The Park Service (Part Two)

World Net Daily report:
~'Pilgrim' family butts heads with feds
~Net users go to bat for 'Pilgrim' family

[banyanroot]

There is a lot more to this story regarding the NPS's abuse of power & this family in particular. See:

American Land Rights Association
http://www.landrights.org/

Wrangell St. Elias News November-December Issue
(This local paper has been following the NPS land grab story from the beginning.)
http://www.mccarthy-kennicott.com/ND2003/page4.html

The Pilgrim Family
http://www.pilgrimfamily.com/

If Pilgrims lose land to park, we all do
(An excellent summation of the true intentions behind the NPS's harassment!)
http://www.adn.com/opinion/story/4380021p-4391127c.html

[E.G.C.]

BTTT!!!!!!

[B4Ranch]

The U.N. International Parks and Biosphere Preserves of the World Heritage Sites System is recognized by the United States as the Supreme Park System by our legislative representatives in the United States.

This in turn puts the land under a whole different set of operating treaty rules.

Common sense, of course, no longer applies to anything done there because the treaty is with the beloved United Nations.

The NPS employees are attempting to operate all national parks under these rules.

World Heritage Sites and Preserves in Alaska and the Yukon"

(Congressional Research Service Reports) National Park System: Establishing New Units

[Issaquahking]

There are books on this if one goes here, on the situation. WAKE UP FOLKS this is a very bad situation coming down the pike. I can talk till I'm blue in the face but it will take all of us to whip this. Please click on the link. We need to hold on to the freedoms we have left and boot the U.N.

There is a lot more riding on this than some rebel in Alaska making waves. This will be a precedence on our future as we know it. This is how things come to pass - get it a long ways away and set the stage (court) to their style (green machine type) and they steal from America again. Call or fax your congressmen and/or senators. Let them know what's going on!

Thank you in advance for moving on this!

[Publius6961]

Two thoughts jump out at me. First of all was the nature od that 2003 fire ever positively determines? No, I am not attracted to tinfoil, but I have seen too much in the last 40 years to rule anything out.
Second, someone had to make the decision to run over an unknown family in a remote isolated place using the brute force of government and the abuse of power in what was hoped would be a invisible place.That slimeball should be isolated and beat within an inch of his life, either actually or legally.

[sauropod]

agreed. Time to move on this.

[amom]

Thanks so much for the heads up here!

[Libertina]

One of my new problems working with the county was a local railroad denying a man access to his own driveway which he'd used 23 years because the rails crossed it... Similar garbage, and must be handled in a similar manner (in the courts). Hope he does better than dealing with the 9th Circus Court of Weasels.