United States v. Wilber N. Olander, William Dolman, Denne M. Harrington, Gary D. Rondeau, Gerald L. Minnich, Arthur Schruder, and Roy D. Wilson

584 F.2d 876
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
DecidedOctober 27, 1978
Docket77-3794, 77-3925, 78-1239, 78-1240, 78-1310, 78-1311 and 78-1312
StatusPublished
Cited by64 cases

This text of 584 F.2d 876 (United States v. Wilber N. Olander, William Dolman, Denne M. Harrington, Gary D. Rondeau, Gerald L. Minnich, Arthur Schruder, and Roy D. Wilson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Wilber N. Olander, William Dolman, Denne M. Harrington, Gary D. Rondeau, Gerald L. Minnich, Arthur Schruder, and Roy D. Wilson, 584 F.2d 876 (9th Cir. 1978).

Opinion

DUNIWAY, Circuit Judge:

These seven appeals have been consolidated and were all heard on the same day, although some were separately argued. We dispose of all of them in this opinion. In each case except that of Olander, we affirm. In Olander’s case, we reverse.

I. BACKGROUND APPLICABLE TO ALL APPEALS.

All of these cases arise from the efforts of the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington to enforce its decree in United States v. Washington, W.D.Wash., 1974, 384 F.Supp. 312, aff’d, 9 Cir. 1975, 520 F.2d 676, cert. denied, 423 U.S. 1086, 96 S.Ct. 877, 47 L.Ed.2d 97. The district court, finding its decree opposed and frustrated by the executive and judicial departments of the State of Washington, and by the organized and vocal defiance of the commercial fishermen in the State of Washington, felt compelled to implement its judgment by the issuance of an injunction. That injunction regulates fishing for salmon in Puget Sound and certain other areas by non-Indian (“non-treaty”) commercial fishermen for the purpose of assuring to Indian (“treaty”) fishermen the opportunity to catch their share of salmon as determined in the court’s original judgment.

The court’s injunction, issued September 27, 1977, provides in material part:

1. All Puget Sound and other marine waters easterly of Donilla Point-Tatoosh line and their watersheds, all Olympic Peninsula watersheds, and all Grays Harbor and its watersheds are hereby closed to all net salmon fishing except during such times and such specific waters as are opened by State or tribal regulations or regulations of the United States conforming to the orders of this Court in this case.

2. All reef net, gill net and purse seine fishermen licensed by the State of Washington, all other persons who attempt to net or assist in netting salmon in the waters described in paragraph 1, the Puget Sound Gillnetters Association, the Purse Seine Vessel Owners Association, the Grays Harbor Gillnetters Association and all persons in active concert or participation with them are hereby enjoined and prohibited from engaging in taking, possessing, or selling salmon of any species taken from such waters, unless such person has first ascertained from the Washington Department of Fisheries telephone “hot-line”, 1-800-562-5672 or 1-800-562-5673, that the area to be fished is open for fishing by non-treaty fishermen at the time the individual intends to fish, provided, that this provision shall not apply to persons exercising treaty fishing rights in accordance with the orders of this Court.

3. The defendant State of Washington is directed to maintain a continuous telephone hot-line service free of charge to any caller from within the State of Washington to provide information on areas within the waters described in paragraph 1 of this order that are open to net salmon fishing by non-treaty fishermen in conformity with the orders of this Court. The defendant shall furnish to this Court and to the United States Attorney a transcript of the daily hot-line messages.

In Puget Sound Gillnetters Association v. United States District Court, 9 Cir., 1978, 573 F.2d 1123, the Gillnetters Association, by petition for a writ of mandamus, and the State of Washington, by appeal, attacked this injunction. We upheld it against all of the attacks there presented to us.

The cases now at bar arise from the attempts of the United States to enforce the injunction by means of criminal contempt *880 proceedings. In each case, the appellant, a commercial fisherman, was found fishing for salmon by the use of a gill net, in an area which, at the time, had been declared to be closed on the “hot-line” mentioned in the injunction. Each appellant had been previously found in an area similarly declared to be closed and had then been personally served with a copy of the injunction and told that he must comply with paragraph 2. Each was charged, in an order to show cause procured by the United States attorney and signed by the judge, with violating 18 U.S.C. § 401(3), found guilty in a trial to the court, and sentenced to 60 days in jail. Each is free on personal recognizance.

With the foregoing as background, we proceed to consider the appeals that are before us. We consider the appeals in the chronological order in which the convictions occurred.

II. DOLMAN-No. 77-3925.

Dolman was found fishing with a gill net in a closed area on September 30, 1977, three days after the injunction was issued. A National Marine Fisheries officer served a copy of the injunction on him, read paragraph 2 to him, was told by Dolman that he understood it, and warned Dolman that if he again fished in a closed area as ascertained from the hot-line, he could be cited for contempt of court. On October 4, Dolman was again found fishing with a gill net in such a closed area and was served with a citation. Thereafter, an order was issued requiring him to show cause why he should not be punished for criminal contempt. After a full hearing, he was found guilty and sentenced to serve 60 days in jail, on November 22, 1977. We consider his six claims of error.

A. Claims governed by prior decisions of this court.

1. That the treaties with the Indians are not self executing and cannot be enforced by the District Court.

This notion was rejected by us in United States v. Washington, supra, 520 F.2d at 684-85, 687, which we reaffirmed in our Puget Sound Gillnetters case, supra, 573 F.2d at 1126-27, 1130 n. 9.

2. That the injunction cannot be enforced against Dolman because he was not a party to United States v. Washington.

This argument was rejected by us in our Puget Sound Gillnetters case, supra, 573 F.2d at 1132-33.

B. The claim that due process was denied in that there was non-compliance with Rule 65, F.R.Civ.P. and the injunction is not specific enough.

The applicable portion of Rule 65 is 65(d):

(d) Form and Scope of Injunction or Restraining Order. Every order granting an injunction and every restraining order shall set forth the reasons for its issuance; shall be specific in terms; shall describe in reasonable detail, and not by reference to the complaint or other document, the act or acts sought to be restrained; .

Dolman argues that the injunction, the operative portions of which are quoted at page 879, supra, incorporates by reference other documents, namely, Washington Department of» Fisheries Regulations, Tribal Regulations, U.S. Regulations, Department of Fisheries Hotline, and a court order issued in United States v. Washington. We find no such incorporation, and counsel does not tell us where he finds it.

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Bluebook (online)
584 F.2d 876, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-wilber-n-olander-william-dolman-denne-m-harrington-ca9-1978.