HEMP GROWER DEFIANT AFTER CROP TAKEN

MANDERSON -- Alex White Plume said Tuesday he will plant industrial
hemp on his family's land again next year, despite having two
consecutive crops confiscated by federal agents.

Agents from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and Federal
Bureau of Investigation seized hundreds of hemp plants Monday from
White Plume's land near Manderson, hauling them away in 11 vehicles
and a U-haul trailer.

White Plume said they removed about 330 bundles of plants, with 20 to
30 plants per bundle.

"They wanted to be in and out of here in an hour, but they didn't
realize how strong the plants were. They went down fighting," he said
with a half-hearted chuckle, noting that agents spent four hours
removing the plants.

Last August, agents confiscated 3,782 hemp plants from the White Plume
place.

Federal law makes it illegal to grow hemp, which is related to
marijuana.

Hemp is different in that it has very low amounts of
tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana
that gives a "high." Hemp also can be used to make everything from
paper to clothing to candy.

Government officials have held that allowing hemp farming would send
mixed messages to young people and make it easier for growers to hide
marijuana plants.

Under federal law, cultivating 1,000 or more plants is punishable by
10 years to life in prison.

But White Plume said he isn't afraid of going to jail because he
believes he has the right to grow hemp under the Fort Laramie Treaty
of 1868.

"We feel like we're not criminals," he said. "I don't even
swear."

White Plume never was charged after last year's raid. Interim U.S.
Attorney Michelle Tapken was not available for comment Tuesday.

Monday's seizure was no surprise to the White Plumes. They had told
federal authorities openly that they were planting hemp and knew
agents planned to raid the plot.

"Our family agreed that we would let them come in and cut it down,"
White Plume said. "We kept our agreement with them. They were real
kind. They were the nicest police officers I've ever seen."

However, he did tell Bureau of Indian Affairs criminal investigators
to leave his property Monday. He said he had asked Oglala Sioux tribal
police earlier this year to take samples of his hemp to be tested for
THC.

"Instead ... they turned it over to the BIA's criminal investigation,
which are federal police officers, who then brought in the DEA," White
Plume said. He said BIA investigators should have consulted with the
tribe before calling DEA.

Members of White Plume's family spent Monday morning sitting around a
sacred staff in the hemp field, forcing agents to pull plants around
them. "We had to show some kind of anger, so we did it through
silence," White Plume said.

He plans to file a lawsuit against the United States, possibly
demanding payment for the plants that were destroyed.

White Plume said he has established "family law" that levies a fine
for damaging hemp plants on his property.