Standing Rock -- Federal Appeals Court Rules in Favor of Violent Cops at Backwater Bridge

Backwater Bridge, Standing Rock, North Dakota, Nov. 20, 2023. Photo Stephanie Keith/Reuters.

Standing Rock -- Federal Appeals Court Rules in Favor of Violent Cops at Backwater Bridge

By Brenda Norrell, Censored News, November 8, 2023

A federal appeals court ruled in favor of law enforcement who fired rubber bullets, bean bags and projectiles at Standing Rock water protectors, and blasted them with water hoses in freezing temperatures, at Backwater Bridge on November 20, 2016.

Water protectors suffered critical injuries while seeking to halt the Dakota Access Pipeline in North Dakota. However, the federal appeals court ruled against them in the class action, civil rights lawsuit that revealed excessive force by law enforcement.

Standing Rock -- Appeals Court to Hear Excessive Force Lawsuit at Backwater Bridge Tuesday

Standing Rock -- Appeals Court to Hear Excessive Force Lawsuit at Backwater Bridge Tuesday

Update: Federal appeals court hears excessive force, class action lawsuit, for injured at Backwater Bridge at Standing Rock

https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2023/09/federal-appeals-court-heard-arguments.html

By Brenda Norrell, Censored News, Sept. 19, 2023

Three hundred water protectors were injured on the night of November 20, 2016, at Backwater Bridge at Standing Rock. Twenty-six were seriously injured and taken by ambulance to nearby hospitals. Guy Dull Knife III was one of them. On Tuesday, an excessive force lawsuit filed against Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier and others will be argued before the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis.

"On the night of November 20-21, 2016, law enforcement shot unarmed, nonviolent water protectors with impact munitions, flash-bang explosives, and freezing blasts of water over the course of ten hours, seriously injuring Appellants and many others," states the federal class-action, civil rights lawsuit Dundon v Kirchmeier.

Wašté Win Young, Water Protector and former Tribal Historic Preservation Officer for Standing Rock, reflected on the significance of the case.

“I was born and raised on Standing Rock. It’s my home. The law enforcement that attacked us were our neighbors. It was surreal. Even now, when I cross that bridge I remember the people who got maimed, fell through ice, sprayed with water and chemicals, injured by those who are supposed to protect us. There are several images imprinted in my mind from November 20, 2016."

"I remember law enforcement indiscriminately aiming water canons at a group of Native American individuals who were praying on their knees, while other law enforcement personnel shot tear gas and projectiles into the crowd where I was standing."

"I nearly choked on the tear gas. It is my hope that the rule of law will prevail against the law enforcement who blatantly disregarded the constitutional and civil rights of hundreds of peaceful protestors," Waste Win Young said.

Photo by Rob Wilson

FBI Destroyed Evidence -- Sophia's Arm Blown Apart at Backwater Bridge -- Court Document

Sophia Wilansky after being struck by police projectile
Graphic image of shattered arm here.

(Above and below) Water Protectors at Backwater Bridge

FBI Destroyed Evidence after Sophia Wilansky's Arm was Blown Apart at Backwater Bridge -- Federal Lawsuit Filed in Minneapolis

By Brenda Norrell
Censored News

MINNEAPOLIS -- The FBI has destroyed vital evidence which would have revealed what munition blew apart the arm of Sophia Wilansky, 21, when she stood at Standing Rock in North Dakota, and peacefully defended the Missouri River from Dakota Access Pipeline.
It was just before dawn on November, 21, 2016 when Sophia's arm was blown to pieces.
More than a year has passed since Sophia began a series of traumatic surgeries to save her arm. A piece of shrapnel was found in her shattered arm.
The FBI has refused to return the evidence it took from her hospital room in Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis, where she was transferred from Bismarck, for its trauma center.
In Minneapolis, the FBI took clothing that Sophia was wearing when she was struck, and the shrapnel found in her arm that was blown to pieces.
According to the government's own documents, these items of evidence were destroyed during the FBI's testing.
The FBI has refused to return the evidence to Sophia, allow a chemical analysis of it, or respond to the family's requests for the evidence.
A federal lawsuit has been filed in Minneapolis for the return of Sophia's property.
The federal lawsuit, filed in federal court in Minnesota on February 2, 2018, also states that a grand jury was convened in the investigation, and the person who transported Sophia to the hospital was subpoenaed.
However, the government then halted the grand jury. No one has been charged, despite a year long investigation.
The complaint states:

The FBI analyzed these items more than a year ago, and it took only two weeks for the analysis. The testing "degraded and permanently altered" the evidence:

When the FBI showed up at Sophia's hospital room, without a warrant, Sophia's father Wayne Wilansky acted in good faith. Wayne agreed to voluntarily allow the FBI to take the items. The FBI agreed in writing to return those items in a timely manner:

The court document also describes the array of so-called no-lethal weapons fired into the bodies of water protectors, as they stood to protect the drinking water of millions from the oil pipeline.
Pepper spray, sponge bullets, CS (tear gas) grenades, bean bags, stinger ball grenades and flash sound devices (concussion grenades) were fired into water protectors.
Numerous unarmed water protectors were seriously injured when they were hit by these projectiles fired by militarized police.
The court document states:

The court complaint also names those who are responsible, including the federal agencies involved, which includes Homeland Security, and the Joint Terrorism Task Force.

Since the FBI has failed to respond and return the evidence, the family is asking the court to order that the evidence be returned, or make the items available to Sophia's chemist for analysis.

Both the U.S. Attorney's Office and FBI are named in the complaint. The case number is posted below:

Also see:
Dineh Marcus Mitchell 'Morton County shot out my eye at Standing Rock'
https://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2018/01/dineh-marcus-mitchell-morton-county.html


Article copyright Brenda Norrell, Censored News