Roger Brown's
Pogo Mine Road Citation Case
(Much more will be added to this site including Roger Brown's detailed sworn affidavits)
This case will reveal 3 years of aggravated harassment by the State of Alaska
and then an abrupt dismissal of charges for trespassing on the Shaw Creek Hillside All Season Road (Pogo Mine Road).
email sent to Governor Sean Parnell on 06/09/2010
When are you going to stop arresting people for trespassing on a public right of way? Your DNR people have issued a restricted access public right away permit for the first 23 miles of the Pogo Mine Road (ADL 416809 and ADL 417066.) Roger Brown of Fairbanks was arrested in 2007 for trespassing when he drove his 4-wheeler 9 miles in on this road (Case 4FA-08-2280CR.) After 3 years and almost a hundred court hearings the prosecutors dismissed charges in May 2010 although Brown wanted a trial. Why is the State of Alaska enforcing a DNR rule that is in clear violation of Section 1.1 - Inherent Rights equal protection clause in the State Constitution? DNR cannot determine which members of the public can access a public right of way. All persons in the public are equal under the State Constitution. DNR has in its permit given the Pogo mine operators and commercial logging interests special access privileges while denying equal treatment for the public on a public right of way. Please provide an answer to why the State of Alaska put Roger Brown through three years of misery and then dismissed the charges.
Roger Brown is a Truck Driver that had to go to court many times instead of going to work only to have the state dismiss the case after 3 years!
These maps show that the State of Alaska is irresponsible by allowing foreign owned companies
to lock up thousands of acres of Alaska Land into mining claims. Perhaps we would be better served if the Federal Government had owned this land. At least they are responsible enough to prevent foreign nations from locking up our land. Remember when the Federal government prevented North Slope crude from being exported to Japan. That was to stop the Japanese from buying North Slope leases. Remember when the federal government prevented Alaskan natives from selling their land in the Alaska Native Land Claims Settlement Act of 1971. That was to stop the Japanese from buying up Alaska. But now we have the State of Alaska allowing the lock up of our land by the Japanese!
The Corporate Officers for Stone Boy, Inc from the State of Alaska Corporate database
From Alaska Department of Natural Resources Pogo Road Mine Permit ADL 416809:
This is DNR’s Final Decision on Teck-Pogo’s right-of-way request to the DMLW to
provide access to the Pogo Mine Project. This decision has DNR issuing two rights-ofway
along the applicant’s proposed route, the Shaw Creek Hillside All-Season Road,
subject to special stipulations, including valid, existing rights, on state owned and
managed land. DNR is authorizing access to the Pogo Mine as a combination of a
private exclusive right-of-way and a public right-of-way (during the mine life as a
restricted use right-of-way), and the right-of-way width will be the disturbance footprint
associated with the finished road (estimated at about 100 feet). In making this decision,
DNR has considered all the information gathered in the Pogo Mine EIS process, the
permitting process for advance exploration activities (which has been ongoing since
1997), and the current permitting process.
In this decision, DNR is issuing a right-of-way for the Shaw Creek Hillside All-Season
Road, with the first 23 miles as a public right-of-way to DNR (ADL# 417066), and the
remaining 26 miles as a private exclusive right-of-way to Teck-Pogo (ADL# 416809). On
the first 23 miles, from the Shaw Creek Road to the east side of the Gilles Creek
crossing, the road will be restricted to Pogo Mine-related uses and approved commercial
timber harvesting uses during the life of the mine. After the mine closes, the first 23
miles will not be reclaimed and will be open to the public. On the final 26 miles, from
west of the Gilles Creek crossing to the mine, the road will be restricted to Pogo Mineral related
uses only, and will be reclaimed at closure of the mine.
Questions:
The Alaska State Troopers are enforcing this rule. Why was Roger Brown's citation from the troopers dismissed by the State of Alaska unless this rule is not enforceable? Can an Alaskan citizen of the public be cited for trespassing on a public right-of-way? Note there are no signs on the public right-of-way saying "NO TRESPASSING!" Does DNR have the authority to issue a restricted use pubic right-of-way? Isn't this a conflict? Either it is a public right-of-way or a private right-a-way. How can we have a restricted use applying to a public right-of-way that allows a select few to use the public right-of-way? If it is a restricted use it cannot be public! There has to be Constitutional authority for DNR to do this.
The State of Alaska Constitution says:
Section 1.1 - Inherent Rights.
This constitution is dedicated to the principles that all persons have a natural right to life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness, and the enjoyment of the rewards of their own industry; that all persons are
equal
and entitled to
Conclusion:
DNR has limited use on a Public Right-of-Way to a select few and this does not treat all persons