ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Alexander M.M. Uballez, the United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, announced that the federal court has issued a summary judgment in favor of the United States as a plaintiff in a case related to the right to pasture and trespassing on National Forest System (NFS) lands.
This issue arose after the U.S. Department of The Forest Service revoked the grazing permit term for the NFS land allocation due to violations of the permit documents by the permit holders. Former permit holders were unable to remove their livestock from the range, saying they did not need Forest Service permission to graze.
According to the verdict and other court records, Craig Thiessen previously held a cattle grazing permit on the property in the Apache National Forest, managed by the Quemado Ranger District of the Gila National Forest in the State of New Mexico. In January 2017, while being investigated for violations of the Endangered Species Act related to wolf trapping in Mexico, Thiessen requested that permits be transferred to a newly formed credit union, Canyon del Buey, LLC, which Thiessen identified as. Member, Manager, and Registered Agent. On May 24, 2018, a criminal information was filed, accusing Thiessen of illegally taking a Mexican wolf in violation of the Endangered Species Act. Thiessen pleaded guilty to knowingly taking endangered wildlife.
On Sept. 18, 2017, Lance Thiessen filed an amended application for a grazing permit term on behalf of Canyon del Buey, LLC, and the LLC’s Statement of Owners listing himself as Manager and his brother, Craig, as Member. USFS issued LLC a permit allowing the grazing of 344 cows on Nov. 21, 2017. That permit was revoked by the USFS on Nov. 29, 2018, for violation of permit regulations. In particular, the USFS reported on Craig Thiessen’s beliefs and the lies made by Lance and Craig Thiessen.
The LLC appealed the decision to revoke the permit, and the decision was affirmed by the Forest Supervisor as the decision representative. The Regional Forester for the Southwestern Region of the USFS decided to conduct a second-stage, discretionary review, and again affirmed the decision. In his July 2, 2019, review decision, the District Forester ordered Lance Thiessen, as the manager of Canyon del Buey, LLC, to remove all cattle from the distribution within 60 days, which was Aug. 31, 2019.
The Thiessens, representing themselves and the LLC, did not remove the cattle as ordered by the USFS. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico, on behalf of the U.S. Department of of agriculture, the Forest Service, brought a civil action for trespass, release, damages, declaratory judgment and easement to evict Craig and Lance Thiessen from Canyon del Buey. , LLC, from NFS lands located on the Gila National Forest in the State of New Mexico, to compel the removal of their livestock from NFS lands, order them to use or occupy NFS lands without legal permission, and recover damages resulting from their unauthorized and illegal use and occupation of NFS lands.
The court found that the continuation of the pasture when it was allocated without permission violates federal regulations and that the Thiessens and LLC violated the allocation. In its decision, the court found that Thiessens and LLC did not own the pasture land when it was allotted and that any water rights claimed on the allotments did not give them the right to graze livestock when it was allotted. The Court permanently enjoins the Defendants from violating the Canyon del Buey Allotment, and retains the authority to enforce the Settlement Agreement until the Defendants pay the money to the United States, in its order of Sept. 1, 2022.
The United States was represented by Assistant United States Attorney Cassandra Casaus Currie and Senior Attorney Andrew Smith of the Environment and Natural Resources Division at the Department of Justice.
