An Emergency Plane Landing Sparks Conversation about Tribal Sovereignty

Transcript

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HOST: You're listening to North Star Stories: Voices from Where We Live, a daily newscast about what it means to live in Minnesota.

ANCHOR: An emergency landing has some asking about tribal sovereignty. Then, a $4 billion rural data center is proposed in southwest Minnesota. And, Minnesota rolls out new DWI "sticker" system.

I'm Gracie J.

Geronimo Power, a company with headquarters south of Minneapolis, is pitching a massive new data center project in the southwest part of the state. Geronimo and Nobles Cooperative Electric claim they aim to be transparent and environmentally responsible, arguing that the project could deliver a once-in-a-generation economic boost. Opponents of the project object to turning more farmland into energy installations. The company still needs a tech giant to commit to purchasing the campus and its renewable power.

In today's main story, a small plane's emergency landing in Red Lake is raising questions about the sovereignty of air space over tribal land. Producer Chaz Wagner talks with the pilot and representatives from Red Lake about the controversy.

Darrin Smedsmo: Yeah, I was flying directly from Roseau to Bemidji. It was a beautiful Wednesday morning.

Chaz Wagner: Earlier this fall, pilot Darrin Smedsmo was flying 4,000 feet above lower Red Lake when he experienced catastrophic engine failure. Darrin quickly prepared his 1945 Stinson for an emergency landing on the closest road near the western boundary of the reservation.

Darrin Smedsmo: A neighbor of mine, absolute coincidence, was right behind me. Saw the whole thing. He works for the Department of Transportation. He had radio, he had strobes, he had a Slow Stop sign, so he stopped traffic and called the tribal police.

Chaz Wagner: The Red Lake Tribal Police were the first to arrive on scene, quickly seizing the plane, citing a 1978 resolution prohibiting the flying of airplanes at a low altitude, less than 20,000 feet over Red Lake Tribal lands. Darrin says he was unaware of any airline jurisdictions over reservation territories.

Darrin Smedsmo: Nobody's heard anything about it. The flight school that I was on my way to hadn't heard nothing about it, and they train over that land. So I had filed a flight plan that day. It was actually the first flight plan I had filed in over 30 years.

Chaz Wagner: The Red Lake Tribal government released a series of statements following the incident, stating the plane had not been "authorized to land on the reservation," and the landing "created immediate safety liability and resource protection concerns for the tribe."

Rebekah Tweten: Red Lake is a little bit separate from the other tribes, where Red Lake did not join the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, and we stand a little more alone.

Chaz Wagner: That's Rebekah Tweten, a US Army veteran and member of the Red Lake Band of Ojibwe.

Rebekah Tweten: Red Lake maintained its own hunting and fishing rights, and it is a little bit separate from the other tribes, because the other Chippewa or Ojibwe tribes, they joined the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, and have kind of like a unity where they can challenge anything that comes up to them.

Chaz Wagner: Six of the seven Minnesota reservations were allotted at the time of the passage of the 1887 General Allotment Act. Red Lake Reservation was never allotted, and the land continues to be held in common by all tribal members. The Treaty of Old Crossing in 1863 officially recognized Red Lake as a separate and distinct tribe. Smedsmo says he's grateful for how Red Lake Tribal authorities treated him.

Darrin Smedsmo: The police department director was wonderful to me, the tow truck lady, she hugged me and she hugged my wife. And the prosecutor, he was very respectful.

Chaz Wagner: A trial hearing was scheduled for November 3, but was postponed. A new date is yet to be announced. Red Lake Nation legal department did not respond to North Star Stories' request for comment. For North Star Stories, I'm Chaz Wagner.

ANCHOR: You are listening to North Star Stories.

Minnesota is replacing special license plates with permanent stickers to identify vehicles stopped for driving while impaired, or D-W- I. Officers will now place the invalidation sticker directly over the license plate, which will also be canceled in the state databases. Police say the new system is faster and safer and consequences for drivers remain the same. Lawmakers say the changes reduce risks for officers and eliminate the need to store and destroy thousands of seized plates.

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HOST: North Star Stories is produced by AMPERS, diverse radio for Minnesota's communities, with support from the McKnight Foundation and the State of Minnesota. Online at ampers dot org.