Wednesday, June 23, 2021

"For Now" -- The Operative Words -- But, "For Now" -- Dancin' In The Streets -- June 23, 2021

Updates 

June 25, 2021: for more reaction

Original

"Judge dismisses tribe's case against DAPL, closing the books for now."

Link here

Judge James Boasberg dismissed all outstanding counts in the case and said the Army Corps would not have to file status updates to the court on the progress of their environmental review. The move marks the end of a winding, years-long chapter in the DAPL dispute, though future legal challenges are likely.

Article published at The Jamestown Sun, 7:08 p.m., June 22, 2021. 

In a brief order, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg dismissed all outstanding counts in the case and said the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers would not have to file status reports to the court on the progress of their environmental review. The judge said the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, which has opposed Dakota Access since its construction began near their North Dakota reservation in 2016, can request for the case to be reopened if there is a violation of prior court orders.

Also at The Williston Herald.  

  • D.C. Circuit Judge James Boasberg agreed with Dakota Access and the Corps and dismissed the SRS Tribe’s case without prejudice.

By the way, it is the "tribe's" case, or is it the "tribes'" case? I've long forgotten. 

From a reader:

  • plaintiffs: Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, et al;
  • plaintiffs: Cheyene River Sioux Tribe, et al;
  • there initially four tribes but two, the Yankton and the Oglala, took their marbles and went home;

When we last visited this story, it was said the judge was still "working on" the issue. The seemingly suddenness and the fact it was a "brief order," suggests to me the judge simply got tired of the whining. How many pipelines already run through this area? In addition, this one is clearly the "safest" of them all, and most highly monitored, and any leak is going to have to defy gravity and flow to the surface.

And we move on. For now.

From a reader, the "full docket text":

MINUTE ORDER: Having considered the parties' [608]-[611] Status Reports, the Court ORDERS that: 1) In light of the Corps' monthly public updates and Plaintiffs' cooperating agency arrangements, the Court will not require independent updates or status reports; 2) All remaining outstanding counts are DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE, given Plaintiffs' lack of objection; 3) The Clerk shall TERMINATE this matter, but Plaintiffs may move to have it reopened in the event, for example, of a violation of the Court's prior Orders; and 4) Plaintiffs shall file a separate action if they wish to challenge the forthcoming EIS, which action they may mark as related to this one so that it will be assigned to this Court. So ORDERED by Judge James E. Boasberg on 6/22/2021. (lcjeb1)

The reader follows legal proceedings very, very closely over many years, particularly as they pertain to North Dakota. 

The reader says this "order" is incredibly short. The reader has written grocery lists that are longer.

2 comments:

  1. After re-reading the article, I see the Fort Berthold group is not involved in the lawsuit...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, that is correct. That would not make sense. The biggest beneficiaries of the DAPL would be the Fort Berthold folks.

      Delete