Blackfeet Tribe bans drug dealer from reservation

Phil Drake | Great Falls Tribune

Show Caption Hide Caption The Blackfeet Reservation The Blackfeet Reservation in Montana is located along the Rocky Mountain Front.

The Blackfeet Tribal Business Council banned a convicted drug dealer from coming on to their reservation, launching what its chairman said is a warning to others who want to come on to tribal property and prey on residents.

The council passed a resolution 5-3 on June 7 saying that Mark John Keuter Jr., 58, sentenced April 4 to five years for criminal possession of dangerous drugs, “is immediately excluded and banished from the Blackfeet Indian Reservation …”

“Trafficking and use of methamphetamine on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation is a major social issue and has caused an increase in domestic abuse, child abuse, assault and property crime,” the tribal council’s resolution reads.

Attempts to reach Keuter, who reportedly is in a diversion program, were unsuccessful.

Harry Barnes, tribal council chair, said Tuesday their action was in part due to beliefs by members that the U.S. Attorney’s office is not doing enough to prosecute reservation-related drug cases. He said the reservation needs to “do a better job of fixing the (drug) problem.”

He said the U.S. Attorneys office has told him they limited resources and need to focus on other crimes considered more important.

“We’ve asked previous U.S. Attorneys to enforce drug laws, but drug crimes are not high on their priority list. But if a tribal leader taking a bribe, it’s a big headline,” Barnes said.

Leif Johnson of the U.S. Attorney's office said Wednesday the office does take drug cases on the reservation "and we prosecute them all. That has been the rule for quite some time."



He said the banishment issue was interesting, "but we leave the tribes to their own sovereignty."

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He said he believed this was the first time the council has taken such action in a drug case, although he said he believed it has been done other reservations.

"It's not an overnight change, but we want to send a message," Barnes said. "I feel good about it. We've got a certain handle on who the dealers are and we need to take action."

He said the legality of the action was questioned, but tribal council members decided to proceed and have the courts sort it out if necessary.

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“We will not tolerate the drug dealers,” Barnes said. “We have the right to expel undesirables. No one identified what is undesirable but in my mind a meth dealer is an undesirable.”

He said Keuter, who is not a member of the tribe, had been trafficking drugs on Blackfeet property. Barnes said even though it did not pertain in this case, stripping people of tribal membership was not an option.

“We’ve never proposed taking away tribal membership,” Barnes said. “We can’t propose that or would we, because that is not right. You can’t take away someone’s tribal membership, you can’t unblood them.”

Keuter’s attorney, Thane Johnson, did not dispute the council’s decision.

“They have every right to do it, I guess I kind of understand,” he said. “I think it’s absolutely legal.”

Johnson said one glitch would be if Keuter owned property on the reservation.

Glacier County Attorney Terryl Matt, whose office prosecuted Keuter, said the council’s decision was “in order.”

Barnes said if Keuter is seen on Blackfeet property he will be escorted off by law enforcement.

According to the Blackfeet June 7 resolution, Keuter was convicted of criminal possession of dangerous drugs with intent to distribute methamphetamine, marijuana and drug paraphernalia.

"I’m not saying he didn’t have tribal members complicit in his crime," Barnes said. "We have a fertile field for drug dealers."



He added there are often disputes over authority between the state, federal, county and tribal governments.

“It’s a constant struggle over jurisdiction,” he said.

But he said few agencies seek legal action.

“If I am a drug dealer and come to a reservation, I likely won’t be prosecuted,” Barnes said. “It’s a catch and release program, that’s why there’s such prevalence on reservations.”

Barnes, who is leaving office in July, said he hopes future councils pursue similar action.

“It has to be a continued application. It can’t be a one and done,” he said hoping those officials would focus on those “who prey on others.”

Reach Phil Drake at 406-422-0772 or pdrake@greatfallstribune.com.