Here is a short-agenda to approach the BLM / DOI Drones.  To start make them prove their EA’s; Demand Accurate Horse Head Counts and prove within the context of the EA; Demand and have them show “Provable Science” and “Valid Data Range Research” within the EA that shows beyond a doubt the harm done to the exact Range area discussed, supposedly by the horses, and where the correction is required (via provable range research and non-bias data).

FAA Law can work for Advocates

One law is FAA PART 91—GENERAL OPERATING AND FLIGHT RULES § 91.13 – Careless or reckless operation.⁴ The law is quite clear, yet ignored. This Journalist says “ignored” because there exists video taped evidence, in abundance, on the Internet, which is not edited what so ever. This is a felony, and as outlined in FAA Part 91–#91.13, as well as within many state and federal jurisdictions on Vehicular Assault upon people or animals.

False Claims Law

Make no doubt to the seriousness of false claims as well. The False Claims Act (31 U.S.C. §§ 3729–3733, also called the “Lincoln Law“) is an American federal law that imposes liability on persons and companies (typically federal contractors) who defraud governmental programs.

Felonies – The short list

Criminal Felonies each, by BLM / DOI employees and Private Contractors with an abundant explanation, as follows and predicated with . . . it appears that criminal violations of the following laws have occurred:

1. 18 USC 641; Public money, property or records; whoever receives, cancels, or retains the same with intent to convert to use or gain . . .
2. 18 USC 1512 (b); tampering with a witness, victim, or informant (Obstruction)
3. 18 USC 371; Conspiracy to commit offense or to defraud United States; conspiracy to obstruct a      criminal investigation . . .
4. 16 USC 1338 (a) (1); wild horses and burros: protection, management, and control; any person who sells, directly or indirectly, a wild free-roaming horse, or burro maintained on private or leased land. . .

More and more outright Felony situations

The highlights of current violation foreshadow previous investigations – ALL FELONIES:

1. BLM Management personnel have authorized the transportation of wild horses to group adopters at the expense of the government;
2. BLM management personnel have authorized the fee waiver and/or fee reduction of wild horses without delegated authority;
3. BLM management failed to inspect and prepare written reports for group adopter facilities and property prior to receiving adopted wild horses;
4. BLM personnel publicly and openly promoted the commercial us of wild horses, i.e., bucking stock and slaughter house;
5. BLM personnel in concurrence with BLM management, entered false information regarding the wild horse documents into BLM DPS-8000 (i.e. or current updated facility) data base;
6. BLM personnel through their government positions, arranged for special privileges and allowances pertaining to wild horse adoptions;
7. BLM personnel and management knowingly converted to the use of another, wild horses belonging to the United States;
8. Many, many more “lack of document” charges, especially in regard to the Wild Horse Herd Counts and the financial income and expenditures mandatory at each BLM facility, were not completed, lost, or unavailable for confirmation – in order to appropriate funding for each facility;
9. Several more listings expressed concern toward illegal activity, and lack of following directorial and mandated training and compliance of Inspectors, Wranglers, and Field Level Administrators of the Wild Horse and Burro Program.

Grazing Situations

So what is untrue, in a realistic ironic statement by the BLM, is this, “In managing livestock grazing on public rangelands, the BLM’s overall objective is to ensure the long-term health and productivity of these lands and to create multiple environmental benefits that result from healthy watersheds. The Bureau administers public land ranching in accordance with the Taylor Grazing Act of 1934, and in so doing provides livestock-based economic opportunities in rural communities while contributing to the West’s, and America’s, social fabric and identity,” Fact Sheet on the BLM’s Management of Livestock Grazing.

“The Taylor Grazing Act of 1934 (43 USC 315), signed by President Roosevelt, was intended to “stop injury to the public grazing lands [excluding Alaska] by preventing overgrazing and soil deterioration; to provide for their orderly use, improvement, and development; [and] to stabilize the livestock industry dependent upon the public range” (USDI 1988). This Act was pre-empted by the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA),” i.e. Taylor Grazing Act of 1934.

Conflict of Interest Law

“The first and perhaps most important point to emphasize is that SGEs are Government employees, for purposes of the conflict of interest laws. Specifically, an SGE is defined, in 18 U.S.C. § 202(a), as “an officer or employee . . . who is retained, designated, appointed, or employed” by the Government to perform temporary duties, with or without compensation, for not more than 130 days during any period of 365 consecutive days.” Precedent and Laws governing this situation can be perused here: CONFLICT OF INTEREST AND THE SPECIAL GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEE. Again and without a doubt, all contracts abide by the Laws and ethics situations in accord with government law and policy.

“Each year OGE issues a survey of prosecutions involving the conflict of interest criminal statutes (18 U.S.C. §§ 202-209). Information on the prosecutions by U.S. Attorneys’ offices and the Public Integrity Section of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division is provided to OGE with the assistance of the Executive Office for United States Attorneys at the Department of Justice,” review: Conflict of Interest Prosecution Surveys.

Legal Violations cost the taxpayers money

I speak with my neighbors, they have never heard of some of this stuff.  But I will tell you here and now, when they find out they are pissed.  Another Advocate has been born.

James Sebastian, accountant/CPA, generated the following from a perusal of BLM expenditure, precisely the Wild Horse Roundups, holding corrals, and shipping:

1. $2.6 Billion Dollars BLM Horse Herd Management of Taxpayer Money Spent;
2. Benefits to Taxpayers while spending taxpayer money = $0;
3. Benefits to Local Area Ranchers/politicians/oil industry accumulative, pay-offs and continuing profit = $12.4 billion dollars and rising.

“This is significant,” Mr. Sebastian states, “. . . as this becomes, and has been, a slice of our public debt, and unfortunately hidden from the public at large. Taxpayers should know where their money is going, it should not be hidden. Right now it is hidden in the BLM, with no credibility or attempt to show the tax paying public the real figures and costs of the roundups. This compared to simply leaving the Wild Herds alone, at an approximate cost-field-management amount of perhaps $852,000.00 per year, for grassland management, horse management, and cattle grazing management.” (i.e. Grassland Management Principles) et al.

Conclusion

This is not meant as an article as such, rather a short synopsis of a few laws and policy situations for information only.  It is up to the individual Advocate to explore the variety of things and options available to everyone.  This is also meant to give the Advocate a slight understanding of the legal-speak required when filing a complaint with the FBI or other government agencies.  Further research is required before making a complaint.  More to come, as Note to WHHA, so this is not the definitive list, simply a short list, version 1.

About Photographer and Journalist

With a glass of good wine in hand I write and edit my photography. As most my opinions are conveyed from life, whether being illusional, real, or ideological, they are just what they are with no excuses. Just a simple thought here and there, take it or leave it.

Cross-posted from the original: http://prophoto7journal.wordpress.com/2012/10/09/a-short-note-to-wild-horse-herd-advocates/

“Although there were a few animal tracks, we witnessed no wildlife – no sounds of birds, insects or rodents scampering…”

A wildfire started on Sunday, August 12^th, 2012 from an apparent lightning strike and by the time it was contained on August 30^th it had burned over 315,577 acres in California’s largest legally designated Wild Horse and Burro Herd Management Area, Twin Peaks.  Craig Downer, Wildlife Ecologist and “Grandma” Gregg, Environmental Researcher are experienced wild horse and burro observers and both familiar with the Twin Peaks Herd Management Area where the majority of the three days were spent searching for Wild Horses and Burros and documenting the extent of the fire damage.  Over 22 hours and 114 miles covered plus hikes into some remote off-road areas.  Travels included many stops to search with binoculars to look for any signs of wildlife – dead or alive.  Any live large and medium animals would be easier to locate in the burned areas due to lack of forage cover and any dead animals would be more difficult to find because of the grey-black color of the burned landscape. During our three long days of traveling through the Wild Horse and Burro Herd Management Area we only found 22 wild horses and 3 burros.

Red shows fire devastation, note all of California side almost totally destroyed. (X on map is of no significance)

Over and over we kept thinking about the Bureau of Land Management’s population reports claiming that more than 952 wild horses and 192 wild burros are currently living in the Twin Peaks Herd Management Area. There is significant evidence that the population is much smaller.  Since the 2010 roundup, we have made many trips into the Twin Peaks Herd Management Area and our trips have found very few horses and burros remain in this vast area. It is apparent that the BLM has overestimated the population of wild horses and burros that remain since the 2010 roundup.  Our observations are consistent with an independent aerial survey completed in 2010 after the roundup, which estimated only 84-265 wild horses and a small population of burros remained in Twin Peaks. The few that remain here in the nearly 800,000 acre Twin Peaks Wild Horse and Burro Herd Management Area are special and have the right to stay here and be protected as is specified under the law.

The BLM stated during the fire that in the course of aerial flights over the Twin Peaks Herd Management Area they saw only about 100 wild horses in the unburned eastern portion of Twin Peaks.  Furthermore, when we were searching the area we met several BLM employees surveying the fire damage.  One BLM employee said he had been observing the Wild Horses and Burros for thirty years and knew the area and animals intimately and although he said he had covered almost all of the HMA, he admitted to finding only one horse on the entire area in three weeks of searching.  The BLM employees made it very clear that in their opinions the fire crews made every effort to protect private property and utilities but let the rest of the public’s land burn almost uncontrolled and this was verified by our observations.

We drove to one of the largest water sources on the HMA. The springs were in excellent condition but since this is one of the few lush watering areas for many miles and because we arrived in the evening (normally the most active wildlife watering time of day), the stillness and lack of animals was very noticeable.   Although there were some animal tracks and lots of cattle feces, with the exception of some small fish in the pond area, we witnessed no wildlife, heard no sounds of birds or insects or rodents scampering; all the normal things a person would expect to encounter in this remote watering hole during the evening.  It was noticeable to the point of being eerie and indicated to a person experienced in nature to believe that the surrounding fire had caused far more damage than the obvious blackened sage and juniper and grass and that in fact, many animals had perished in the fire.  The silence spoke volumes.

 Cross-posted from Straight from the Horse’s Heart by R.T. Fitch http://rtfitchauthor.com/2012/10/08/twin-peaks-rush-creek-wild-fire-report-where-are-all-the-wild-horses-and-burros/