Łutsel K'e chief says apology, healing needed after court tosses culture camp search warrant

The chief of Łutsel K'e Dene First Nation says the N.W.T. government needs to apologize and help his community heal, after a since-thrown-out warrant allowed renewable resource officers to search a culture camp for evidence of caribou poaching last month.

On Monday morning, N.W.T. Supreme Court Justice Shannon Smallwood quashed the warrant at the request of Łutsel K'e Dene First Nation lawyer Larry Innes. Lawyers for the territorial government didn't object.

Following that decision, Chief James Marlowe said his community is seeking several things from the territorial government. Among the asks is for Environment Minister Shane Thompson to go to Łútselk'e and apologize to community members, and for the government to hold a healing event in Łútselk'e and offer compensation to help deal with trauma from the search.

They also want officials who authorized the search to resign, and for the government to commit to a "shared approach" where they consult the First Nation before taking such action in the future.

"I think that we have this opportunity to fix it and then get on with our lives, and that in the future, no disrespect or [unauthorized actions] on our lands would occur," Marlowe said.

CBC asked Thompson for an interview, which was not granted.

In an email, Trista Haugland, a media co-ordinator for cabinet communications, said Thompson would not comment on court decisions.

"The minister also cannot speculate on future actions and will continue to monitor the ongoing investigation in this matter," Haugland wrote.

"As previously committed, [Environment and Natural Resources] will complete an independent review into officer conduct during this specific enforcement action."

The department said in late September that it would be seeking an external review by "outside enforcement specialists."

The search, which lasted for hours on Sept. 13 as renewable resource officers investigated the poaching of 10 caribou within a protected no-hunting area where carcasses were left with meat still on them, was triggered by two anonymous tips, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources has said.

The First Nation had criticized the warrant as being far too broad by allowing a search of the entire camp, violating Indigenous rights and traumatizing children as well as elders who have lived through a period where they feared wildlife officers.

A copy of the warrant, shared with CBC News, shows the justice of the peace who signed it was satisfied that there were reasonable grounds to believe "unspecified individuals" had harvested caribou illegally and that evidence would be present at the camp.

Innes, the lawyer for Łutsel K'e Dene First Nation, said Tuesday morning that it was clear in court that the scope of the warrant — which allowed officers to search the entire camp of 80-some people, including tents, freezers and anywhere meat might be stored — crossed the line.

"You can't just go into someone's home and search it — you have to have authority to do so. And in these circumstances, there was really no contest," he said.

"The rights that people have under the Charter … were so clearly violated that the lawyers for the government, the Attorney General, knew they didn't have a case. And they said as much in court yesterday."

The court decision means any evidence investigators gathered can't be used, he added.

Moving forward with caribou conservation

Innes said the situation has shaken the trust between Łutsel K'e and the government, and that will need to be rebuilt as they work to conserve caribou and particularly the Bathurst herd.

"From a bigger perspective, the community takes caribou extremely seriously," he said.

He added he's advised the First Nation of its options, including the possibility of asking the court to issue a financial penalty against the government for the search.

"It's not enough to simply say it was wrong — it has to be made right," he said.

"It's really now up to [the community] to decide how far they want to take this."

Marlowe said the community is set to hold a meeting in early November to discuss next steps.