Flandreau Tribe Says Marijuana Not behind City Police Split

FLANDREAU, S.D. (AP) — A lawyer for the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe says longstanding problems led to it ending a policing agreement with the city of Flandreau, not the tribe's decision to legalize marijuana.

The tribe gave the city a 90-day notice in June that it's ending a 16-year agreement, effective Sept. 4. The Argus Leader reports the move came a week before the tribe decided to grow and sell marijuana, which city officials attribute for the split.

The tribe's lawyer, Seth Pearman, said Wednesday that problems that led to the tribe cutting ties included a lack of cooperation from Flandreau police. He says issues began in 2013.

Flandreau Police Chief Anthony Schrad says officers would have been able to arrest non-Native Americans for marijuana use. But Pearman says officers would have needed permission to go on tribal land.

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