With the trial of Central Alaska's Jim Wilde over, the National Park Service went to the small, Yukon River village of Eagle on Friday to try to do damage control with an upset citizenry.
Feelings there have been running high since the 71-year-old Wilde, who is well known in the Alaska Interior, was chased down by gun-toting rangers last September, knocked to the ground, and handcuffed while his traumatized 75-year-old wife watched. Jim was then hauled off to jail more than 100 miles in Fairbanks. He eventually made bail and got out.
But he went on trial in Fairbanks earlier this month on charges of evading and resisting arrest, and operating an unregistered riverboat. A verdict in the case isn't expected for weeks. His attorney, Bill Satterberg, asked for a jury trial, but couldn't get it. The case is to be decided by a federal magistrate, who could be hard pressed to ignore the fact Wilde fled rangers, though he says it was only to go to shore to meet safely, while operating an unregistered boat.
At the very least, Wilde is almost certain to be found guilty of failing to register the boat. He didn't really try to defend that inaction at a trial which focused primarily on what happened after he refused to shut his boat down in the 6-knot current of the Yukon so the rangers who'd waved him over to their seemingly disabled riverboat could perform what they called a "safety inspection.'' The encounter quickly turned ugly. The Park Service blamed Wilde for all of it. His attorney, Satterberg, pretty much turned the tables and put the Park Service on trail in the Fairbanks courtroom. By the end of the case, it was hard not to wonder if maybe the Park Service hadn't gone too far.
All of which played into a decision by the agency to go to Eagle to talk. The meeting, according to reports coming out of the riverside community about 150 people near the U.S.-Canada border, did not go all that well. There was said to be an "angry response" from the crowd when Yukon Charley Rivers National Preserve superintendent Greg Dudgeon and enforcement chief Gary Youngblood said the same rangers who cuffed Wilde and confronted some other area residents would be back patrolling the river after ice-out this year.
Both rangers are seasonally employed in Alaska. Both this year spent the winter Outside, as Alaskans call the rest of the world. Ann Millard at Eagle Community Radio posted this brief report on the meeting to discuss their return:
On Friday evening, Apr. 8, a group of almost 50 residents met with representatives of the National Park Service at the Eagle Community School gym. The meeting, which lasted for almost 3 hours, consisted of a question and answer session with Greg Dudgeon and Gary Youngblood.
The majority of those present wanted the National Park Service to remove the rangers who had altercations with residents last summer. After two hours of testimony the NPS representatives stated that these rangers were scheduled to come back to Eagle this coming summer, which prompted an Angry response from the audience. Eagle resident Don Woodruff stated that this would 'guarantee' more confrontations between locals and NPS rangers. Several residents said that they don't trust that the rangers are acting in their best interest; one commented that she was 'uneasy' that any contact with the Park Service might be confrontational in the future.
Several residents stated that the National Park Service should not be patrolling the river and that violations of the safety requirements are a State matter. Others felt that the Park Service rangers should know who the residents along the river are and their rights as in-holders or subsistence users of the Yukon-Charley Preserve. Others stated that the NPS was interfering with subsistence hunting and fishing activities by locals. A show of hands indicated almost unanimous consensus that NPS should back off enforcement of the registration and safety checks, especially those requiring contacting or boarding of a boat in mid-stream.
There were a few remarks from the residents who felt that the NPS presence in the preserve is a benefit to travelers and residents who travel on the river and may need assistance; and who value the renovations of the historic mining cabins and roadhouses as incentives for tourism.
A working group was established to continue negotiations between residents and the NPS. Dates and times of future meetings will be published.
KEAA-LP was unable to provide a quality live broadcast of this meeting. As soon as a recording is obtained, the meeting will be re-broadcast in its entirety.
Contact Craig Medred at craig(at)alaskadispatch.com.