September 3, 2003

Barry Adams
Box 8574
Reply: GrLEO1 MsIa. Mt. 59807
ph/fax (406) 542 0331

USDA, UnderSecretary of Agriculture Mark Rey,
Chief Bosworth,
Dave Ferrell, Deputy Director, Law Enforcement and Investigation,
D. Bschor, Director, Recreation, Heritage and Wilderness Resources,
(RHWR) Staff, (2720), Mail Stop 1125, Washington, DC 20250-1125,
Daniel Aron, National Non-commercial Group Use Co-ordinator,
Lynn Bidlack, Region 4, Special Use Co-ordinator,
Tom Tidwell, Forest Supervisor,
and to whom it may concern in Forest Service, etc.

c/o District Ranger Steve Ryberg

Wasatch-Cache National Forest
1565 Highway 150 South, Suite A,
P.O. Box 1880, Evanston, Wyoming 82931-1880

RE: Statement of Complaints against USFS Law Enforcement Officers at the Annual Gathering of the Tribes in Utah, 2003 - part I

Note: This Statement of Complaint is Part 1 of a Section of a (forthcoming) more detailed, extensive Redress of Grievances I will be filing. Note: Also this is a supplement to my "Petitions for Redress" submitted May 10, 2002 - Case Number 1307243, See File Code: 1700, Route To: 2700, which has been referred to - Director, Recreation Heritage and Wilderness Resources.

Howdy,

I am addressing this to these various peoples and functions within Forest Service and USDA because I have every hope this Complaint concerning these LEOs under the Command of (now retired?) Incident Commander Malcolm Jowers, will be taken seriously and respected. In this Section, part 1, 1 address my Grievance toward the conduct of Officers, LEOs attached to Incident Command:

Grievances concerning Law Enforcement Officer Kenneth Boreman/Boerman:

Having Officers like LEO Boreman (sp) assigned to the Gathering and given a "free rein" to act/speak in the manner described in these "Statements" is a Public Safety issue, as well as a Law Enforcement issue. "Cultural Sensitivity" ought to be pre-requisite qualifications for any Forest Service, especially LEOs, to be assigned to the Gathering. This Complaint is the "tip of the iceberg" of many ways Forest Service "discriminated" in "applying" Regulation 36 CFR 251 to the Gathering this Year.

I contend in this Grievance that Officer Kenneth Boreman/Boerman's actions and speech (and other Officers) were part of an "official" policy developed by John Twiss and Malcolm Jowers, on the "Incident Management Study Team", and others; and carded out by willing LEOs, underlings. This policy, implemented over the years, seeks to interfere with the civil rights of the people who attend including their rights to peaceably assemble in a manner of their own choosing. Forest Service through the operations of Incident Command interfere, intervene and seek to after various elements and processes of these "peaceable assemblies for purpose of expression" i.e. in a particular manner known as "Rainbow Way". Forest Service seeks to alter the experience of those attend to conform more to a manner "approvable" and "acceptable" to this U.S. Government. Forest Service interferes in three major ways:

(1) political processes of the Gathering i.e. "paper chiefs" (permit signers);

(2) AND the educational experiences/processes of children attending the Gathering; (note: these are the issues I am taking up in this Section, part 1)

(3) and the Ceremonial experiences/processes of attendees at this "peaceable assembly for purpose of expression of Peace".

No other cultural experience/celebration in this Country is or has been dealt this kind of hand, by the Federal Government - not since, Indigenous Peoples' children were taken by the Government, fed into "missionary" schools, forbidden to speak their language etc...

I contend LEOs, as a matter of policy and personal inclination set out to introduce certain programs concerning children attending the Gathering, similar to the way programs are developed in public schools, without any parents attending the Gathering giving their permission.

These "programs' I call "Officer Friendly" and another is what I call, "Officer Security".

"Officer Friendly" tactics, (as I call it here in my Complaint) is a giving of gifts to all the children of the Gathering, approaching them,

I said, "I will look at these and decide if I want these for my daughter." I asked him, "If he was doing this for other children?'

And he replied, "Yes, to every child in the Gathering."

Note; Also, there were several incidents in "Kid Village", an area of the Gathering dedicated to the Children, where Mounted Officers, wearing guns/weapons, were giving candy to the children, without asking parents; and some folks very loudly raised their objections.

(Also Note: in the soft earth areas in and around Kid Village, these Mounted Officers horses left deep tracks in the soft earth... people would have to fill in these deep prints - deep enough if you stepped in one, particularly small legs, and/or while running i.e. a child could get injured - many attendees pointed this out to the Mounted Officers, the patrols continued throughout the Gathering into and around Kid Village.

June 24th, re: LEO K. Boreman and Officer LampShire:

It was within the next day or so, on June 24th, while on patrol - same Officers, Boreman and Lampshire (at and near same live-in Van where I was staying on "ole 307") - these LEOs were involved in the Incidents with Michael Crater and Jeannie Williams, See Attached Statements of Michael Crater and Jeannie Williams concerning Officer Kenneth Boreman (sp)

My interaction with LEO Boreman on June 24th

In the evening, while encamped on "old road" 307, two Forest Service LEOs, on patrol, attached to the Incident Command, for the "Annual Gathering", under the orders of Incident Commander Malcolm Jowers, drove by on "old road" 307 and then turned around up the road from where 1, my partner and our child were encamping in our converted (for camping) van. These LEOs, later identified to me as Officer Lampshire and Officer Kenneth Boreman spoke to my neighbors, one of whom (Michael Crater) was near my van at the time; these Officers exchanged communications between these folks encamped nearby going up the Road and then upon returning. Upon their leaving the second time, upon inquiry I found that the communications expressed were that Officer Boreman (I paraphrase) inquired about my child, whether the little girl was in the van.... then, Officer Boreman, said that my child and other children at the Gathering weren't safe; and further that Officer Boreman then informed these folks, my "neighbors" J. Williams and M. Crater that a child had been sexually assaulted (8 or ten times) at the Gathering; then further stated that Forest Service knew that there were many child predators at the Gathering, and were after them.

Upon hearing this information (See J. Williams, M. Crater Statements), I had access to a small radio, and inquired to other attendees in many areas of the Gathering, as to whether "grooming" them to act "friend[)(' toward the LEOs, see them as their "friends". And/or the expansion of "Officer Friendly" is with the tactic of "Officer Security" i.e. to attendees - "your only security here at the Gathering is LEOs, not the "Shanti Sena" i.e. neighborhood watch (self-aware) "nor your parents" i.e. by telling people, and the children that "predators are loose in the Gathering" and since the parents aren't looking after their children, without the LEOs the children weren't safe... These LIES are intentional tactics, no doubt thought up by some Forest Service psychologist, and introduced/implemented as policy by people like John Twiss and Malcolm Jowers.

I contend this year the Forest Service went after the children of attendees, and sought to offer an "alternative program" to whatever experience and education the children would otherwise have received while attending the Gathering.

Following is my experience concerning Officer's Boreman, and Lampshire, as well as Statements from M. Crater and J. Williams, who corroborate my experiences, plus I attach Karen Zirk's Statement concerning similar experiences with Officer Boerman. See Statements below.

Adams Statement: Specific Complaint concerning conduct of Officer Kenneth Boerman/Boreman, Officer Lampshire re: "Officer Friendly" and "Big Brother" tactics:

This year, as part of programs to wage a "war" to win the "hearts and minds of the children who attend the Gathering, Incident Command instructed their patrols, to approach "every child in the Gathering" as one LEO said to some attendees, including me, and do what? The What? included handing out Smokey the Bear comic books, little toys, and candy. Acting as "Officer Friendly".

On June 22 or June 23, Officers Lampshire and Boreman, stopped their patrol vehicle, Officer Lampshire got out approached me, outside the live-in Van where I was staying, along "ole road 30T'.

Officer Lampshire asked me, 'Where is the little girl that was here in the van?"

I said, "That is my daughter, what is it you want?"

Officer Lampshire replied he had some things to give to her...

I asked him, "What?" and said, "Show them to me, if I want my daughter to have them, I will."

He said, "Here!", showed me a Smokey the Bear comic book, a toy, and gave them to me.

He asked if there had been any reports of any "child being sexually assaulted at the Gathering.". The answers all came back, "NO!".

I radioed around for several reasons:

(1) Alarmed by hearing this statement from a LEO, I immediately sought more information. I take the credo of these "Gatherings" - "you are your own security" very responsibly, (likewise so does my partner) and am familiar with some of the ways of information-sharing with other individuals at Gatherings of similar concern i.e. voluntary neighborhood watch called "Shanti Sena". Therefore, I radioed to check this information out with this network of attendees. To alert people to be aware, and I asked folks to share any information. No one had heard any such information.

(2) 1 know that Forest Service Incident Command copy all radio transmissions surrounding these Gatherings. (Evidence exists to support this claim, including admissions-shared information by various LEOs/other Forest Service personnel attached to these Gatherings.) Therefore, I wanted it on the record that these Officers, specifically Officer Boreman had made such outrageous statements, in fact, fabrications, and had done so at that exact moment in time - through methods of FOIA and/or Legal Discovery, one could access the Radio Logs for that period, available from Incident Command. Likewise, knowing the radio logs were being copied, listened to, I registered my objections for the Forest Service Incident Command LEOs spreading such lies. And put the Forest Service on notice that I would be checking into these actions.

(3) To alert other folks engaged in Shanti Sena (neighborhood watch) of the dis-information being spread by the Incident Command. These statements are/were very alarming. I also asked for help in identifying these Officers involved in this specific incident. At the time I did not know the names of these Officers. I learned their names the next day, See June 25th, this Grievance.

(B) June 25th - B. Adams complains to Lynn Bidlack and asks Officer Boreman concerning his statements, he denies making statements:

In the early afternoon, I chanced to be up on the Road 307, voluntarily working on Road and parking problems, with other concerned individuals, near and at an area known as "Shuttle Stop" at this year's Gathering. This area is one where people/attendees were being shuttled back and forth along Road 307, from Front Gate and fledgling Parking Lots to near the "head of Main Trail" which went downhill into the Meadow Areas of the Gathering. Somewhere along about this time, around 2pm or 3pm Region 4 Special Uses Permit Coordinator Lynn Bidlack accompanied by a Safety Officer, named "John", stopped near this Shuttle Stop and an impromptu discussion took place between Lynn Bidlack, Safety Officer and a number of attendees, including myself:

(1) concerning parking and road problems

(2) concerning the law enforcement actions taking place wherein it was expressed that folks who just were then getting off the "shuttles" were being accosted by LEOs and being cited for things like "dog off leash"... as mentioned... LEO Oates was still processing the citation of the woman who questioned him as to his actions.

A number of folks got involved with this scene and a number of other LEOs (on patrol or called in) appeared including the LEO Officer Kenneth Boreman - (who I was able to identify through investigation) AND was one of the Officers who had patrolled near the Van I was encamping in on "Old Road 307", evening of June 24th, (as described: See M. Crater, J. Williams affidavits, Attachments).

Note: The other Officer on patrol with Officer Boreman, I later identified as Officer Lampshire.

Standing at the side of the Road, with other LEOs nearby, and up to 20 or more other attendees nearby, I asked LEO Boreman, in the presence of a number of witnesses including Lynn Bidlack. and Safety Officer "John", concerning why he made the statements concerning - sexual assault on a child and warrants for pedophiles - on the previous evening (24th) to M. Crater and J. Williams, See Affidavits. Officer Boreman denied he had made such statements. I spoke very strongly about all of this to Lynn Bidlack and Safety Officer "John". I told them very directly that the statements Officer Boreman was making were inflammatory and were causing harm to the communications between Forest Service and attendees, also that it was a form of verbal harassment spreading these statements - and these statements were disruptive, particularly coming from LEOs. I told Lynn Bidlack, who I had met in previous meetings, that I intended to "complain" to the Forest Service concerning Officer Boreman's actions.

(C) June 26th, 2003, further information - re: K. Boreman

After a meeting with Incident Commander Malcolm Jowers, and other Police Authority (reviewed in my forthcoming Redress of Grievance) I asked Jowers concerning Officer Boreman's statements concerning sexual assault on a child - nearby was a reporter from Park City, as witness - and Jowers replied that there had been a rumor of a sexual assault on a 16 year old girl but no evidence of any said assault was ever confirmed. I stated objections to Boreman's actions, and asked Malcolm Jowers if he was going to do something about my complaint - and I referred to my verbal complaint to Lynn Bidlack (June 25th). He mumbled something to the effect he would look into it, and then was driven away.

(Note: See Attachments, neighbors i.e. persons encamped nearby - M. Crater and J. Williams testimony/affidavits. See Also Karin Zirk's letter of July 23, 2003 to Lynn Bidlack, Evanston Ranger District, RE: Statement of Complaints against USFS Law Enforcement Officers at the Annual Gathering of the Tribes in Utah, 2003)

for justice,

(sg) Barry Adams, plunker

Barry Adams, plunker, Montana