Following the indictments of South Dakota cattle ranchers Charles and Heather Maude, R-CALF USA has urged the Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Forest Service and the Department of Justice to immediately drop all charges against the couple, encouraging a common-sense solution.
In June, the Maude’s of Caputa, South Dakota, were individually indicted on charges of theft of government property. The couple are accused of stealing and modifying a USFS Grazing Allotment of about 25 acres, owned and managed by the Maude family, free of infraction or rule violation, for over 100 years. Having been charged separately, the couple must retain two attorneys and are each facing up to 10 years in prison and fines up to $250,000.
“The abuse of power exerted by the USFS in their sealed indictments for theft of government property against Charles and Heather Maude, is not only erroneous but retaliatory in nature. These actions must be reined in immediately,” said R-CALF USA Property Rights Chair Shad Sullivan.
In a letter to USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack, R-CALF USA outlined the events and concerns with the USFS actions including a “lack of common-sense knowledge by USFS regarding the fact that dated and primitive survey boundaries are often imperfect,” the lack of communication by USFS employees, and the incredibly nefarious manner in which each indictment was received.
The letter concludes, “The Maude family are generational community members and upstanding citizens focused on land stewardship and food production. We encourage the USDA, USFS and the DOJ to effectively communicate with the Maude family to find a common-sense solution to what has become a nation-wide issue. We urge your agencies to restrain from overreach and from exercising abusive power in their duties.”