0RIGINAL 

COOPERATIVE LAW ENFORCEMENT AGREEMENT 

O

BETWEEN 

 WE 

THE LEECH D , SAND LAKE BAND OF

BELTP, A3ffI, CASS, HUBBARD, ITASCA, AND 

THE CITY CASS LAKE, MINNESOTA 

THIS AGREEMENT, made and entered into between the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe 

Indians acting through the Leech Lake Reservation Tribal Committee, hereinafter referred 

to as "Band", and the Counties of Beltrami, Cass, Hubbard and Itasca, hereinafter 

referred to as "Counties", and the City of Cass Lake, Minnesota, hereinafter referred to as 

"City", and the State of Minnesota, hereinafter referred to as "State" pursuant to the 

provisions of Minnesota Statue Section 626.93, Subd. 4 and 471.59. 

NOW THEREFORE, the Band, State, Counties, and City hereby enter into this 

cooperative agreement and agree as follows: 

1. PURPOSE OF AGREEMENT 

The purposes of this agreement are to: 

a. Coordinate, define and regulate the provision of law enforcement services 

and to provide for mutual aid and cooperation between the Band, Counties, 

State and City relating to enforcement of laws of the State of Minnesota, and 

laws of the Leech Lake Band. 

b. Establish a process by which the Band, Counties, State and City will work 

together cooperatively to enhance public safety efforts on the Leech Lake 

Reservation. 

c. Preserve the parties' respective jurisdictions on the Leech Lake Reservation 

so that neither the Band, State, Counties or City is conceding any claim to 

jurisdiction by entering into this cooperative agreement. 

2. LAW ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY OF THE LEECH LAKE BAND 

UNDER MINNESOTA LAW. 

The Leech Lake Band is authorized, pursuant and subject to Minnesota Statute 

Section 626.93 to enforce the criminal laws upon the lands within the State of 

Minnesota within the Leech Lake Reservation if all of the following conditions 

are satisfied: 

a. The Band agrees to be subject to liability for its torts and those of its officers, 

employees, and agents acting within the scope of their employment or duties 

arising out of a law enforcement agency function conferred by Section 

626.84, Subd. 1, paragraph (h), to the same extent as a municipality under 

Chapter 466 of Minnesota Laws. 
b. The Band waives its sovereign immunity with respect to claims arising out of 

this liability to the same extent as a municipality under Chapter 466 of 

Minnesota laws. 

c. The Band flies with the Minnesota Board of Peace Officer Standards and 

Training a bond or certificate of insurance for liability coverage for the 

maximum amounts set forth in Minnesota Statute Section 466.04. 

d. The Band flies with the Minnesota Board of Police Officers Standards and 

Training a bond or certificate of insurance for liability of its law enforcement 

officers, employees, and agents for lawsuits under the United States 

Constitution. 

e. The Band agrees to be subject to Minnesota Statute Section 13.82 and any 

other laws of the State of Minnesota relating to-data practices of law 

enforcement agencies. 

f. The execution of the agreement by all parties. 

g. The Bands' Peace Officers become licensed police officers pursuant to this 

agreement and Minn. Stat. § 626.93. 

3. LAW ENFORCMENT AUTHORITYOF THE STATE, COUNTY AND CITY 

UNDER TRIBAL LAW. 

The State, County and City shall have authority to enforce civil regulatory law 

under tribal law. 

a. The State, County and City shall have authority to stop individuals in order 

to enforce State or Tribal Laws. 

4. .H)_ENTIFICATION OF OFFICERS 

The Band shall provide to the Counties, State and City, a current list of all of its 

duly licensed peace officers and shall at all times keep the Counties, State and 

City advised of the names of officers exercising authority pursuant to this 

agreement. The Band shall provide to the Counties, State and City, the 

Minnesota POST Board Peace officer license number of all officers exercising 

authority under this agreement. It is understood and agreed between the parties 

that no officer who is not duly licensed as a peace officer by the Minnesota POST 

Board shall exercise authority under this agreement. 

5, RESERVATION BOUNDARIES 

For purposes of this Agreement, the boundaries of the Reservation shall be 

limited to as what is set forth in Exhibit "A". The boundaries set forth in this 

agreement shall not be used by any party for any purpose in any future lawsuit 

determining reservation boundaries. 
6. RETENTION OF COUNTY CRIMINAL JURISDICTION AND 

RESPONSIBILITY 

Nothingin this agreement shall be construedto limit or to release the County 

Sheriff, the City Police Department, or the State from criminal jurisdiction or 

responsibility otherwise possessed by the Counties, State and City under 

applicable law. The Sheriff or next in command of the SherifFs Office shah have 

the authority to control any designated crime scene, and law enforcement 

officers of the Band will cooperate with the direction of the Sheriff or officer in 

charge. The Sheriff shall have exclusive jurisdiction upon lakes and waterways 

with the exception of any conservation enforcement agreements between the 

State of Minnesota and the Reservation. 

7. INCARCERATION AND PROSECUTION 

a. Incarceration. In any matter involving the arrest of an individual for a nontribal offense by a Band Law Enforcement Officer under the provisions of this 

agreement that occurs within the boundaries of the Leech Lake Reservation that 

lies in one of the agreement counties, the custody of such indiv.idual shall be 

transported to the County Detention Center and the Sheriff shall be obligated to 

receive and incarcerate such individual pursuant to applicable Minnesota law 

and in the same manner as other incarcerations. 

b. Proseeuti0ns. In any matter involving the citation of an individual by a Band 

Law Enforcement Officer under the provisions of this agreement that occurs 

within the Leech Lake Reservation that lies within the agreement counties, or 

city the prosecution of such individual shall be by the County Attorney or city 

attorney of that respective county pursuant to applicable Minnesota Law. 

c. Applicability_. Paragraphs 7.a. and 7.b. shall apply to the incarceration or 

prosecution of Band members for alleged violations of State Law. 

8. EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS 

a. Administrative Information The Band, Counties, State and City agree to 

provide, in a timely manner and when requested, information and data 

necessary to implement this agreement. Such information may include, but not 

limited to, the following: 

(1) Information relating to their respective laws; 

(2) Information relating to staffing; and 

(3) information relating to equipment inventory capabilities. 

Each party will respond to information request in accordance with 

Minnesota Government Data Practices Act, Minnesota Statute Chapter 

13. 

b. Participation in Dispatch System. The Counties and City shall enable Band 

Law Enforcement Officers to participate in the radio dispatch system of the 

Counties as necessary to enable Band Officers to respond to emergencies and 

request for assistance on the Leech Lake Reservation. Each time a Band Law 

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Enforcement Officer investigates or responds to a call for service of an alleged 

violation of State criminal law, the Band officer shall as soon as possible contact 

the County dispatch in the county where the incident or investigation is located 

so that a CFS (call for service) or ICR (initial complaint report) may be 

generated. 

c. Investigative Reports. [n exercising authority under this agreement, Band 

Law Enforcement Officers shall prepare investigative reports in accordance 

with the County's or City procedures, and at the request of the Sheriff, County 

or City Attorney, shall perform any additional or supplemental investigation, 

including interviewing of necessary witnesses or the execution of any necessary 

processing including search warrants. 

d. Court Appearances. Band officers shall be available for any trial or hearing 

in any of the Counties District Courts, and CountyOffieers, State Officers and 

City Officers shall be available for any trial or hearing in the Leech Lake Tribal 

Court upon written notice from the respective County Attorney, City Attorney 

or Band prosecutor, provided that reasonable attempts will be made to 

accommodate an officer's schedule and that necessary continuances Will be 

requested due to officer illness, vacation, or other conflicts which may prevent 

an officer from attending a scheduled proceeding. It shall not he necessary to 

subpoena a Band officer, County Officer, State Officer or City Officer for their 

respective appearances, and such officer shall not be entitled to any court 

compensation from the Counties, City, State or Band for making said court 

appearances in criminal cases, other than from their respective employment 

agency. 

e. Civil Regulatory. Any Tribal citation (for a civil regulatory offense not 

covered by Public law 280) issued to Tribal members within the Reservation 

Boundaries under the authority granted herein shall be directed to the Leech 

Lake Tribal Court for processing and/or prosecution. Any citation to non-band 

members shall be forwarded to State District court for processing. The parties 

shall cooperate to develop a system for determining whether an individual 

violating the State, City or Leech Lake Band traffic regulations is a member of 

the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe. If an enforcement action is taken against a 

person presumed to be a Band member, and it is determined during the 

enforcement process that the person is not a Band member, enforcement of the 

law will proceed under Minnesota law applicable to non-Band members, in the 

Minnesota court system. If an enforcement action is taken against a person 

presumed to be a non-Band member, and it is determined during the 

enforcement process that the person is a Band member, enforcement of the law 

will proceed under Band law in the Leech Lake Tribal Court if the offense is not 

covered by Public Law 280. 

9. ]PERSONNEL AND EOUIPMENT 

Each party shall be solely responsible for its own personnel, equipment and 

supplies, except that, when one party furnishes equipment or supplies for the use 

of the other party's law enforcement personnel, such equipment or supplies shall 

be returned in its original condition or shall be repaired or replaced as 

appropriate and as circumstances permit. Any peace officer acting under this 

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agreement shall, at all times, be considered to be an employee of his or her 

employing agency. Any peace officer acting under this agreement shall continue 

to be covered by his or her employing agency for purposes of wages, benefits, 

workers compensation, unemployment compensation, disability, other employee 

benefits and civil liability purposes. 

10. POLICIES AND PROCEDURES 

In order to avoid conflict and to enhance the law enforcement efforts of the 

Counties, City, State and Band, the parties shall develop policies and procedures 

that govern day-to-day implementation of this agreement. These policies and 

procedures shall be developed through the mutual agreement of the respective 

County, State, City and Band representatives. These policies and procedures 

may be amended from time to time by mutual agreement of the Sheriff, City and 

Director of Public Safety. The Counties, City, State-and Band agree to abide by 

such policies and procedures as if fully set forth in this agreement. 

11. CRIME REPORTING OBLIGATIONS 

The parties agree that any required state or federal crime reporting obligation 

shall be coordinated with the respective County Sheriff. The Band law 

enforcement agency shall provide the Sheriff's Departments with information, 

reports, and forms sufficient so that the respective County Sheriff can discharge 

the duties of state and federal crime reporting. All efforts will be made to 

statistically distinguish state and federal crime reporting based upon cases 

investigated by the Band law enforcement agency and the respective County 

Sheriff's Department. 

12. LIABILITY FOR TORTS AND WAIVER OF SOVEREIGN IMUNITY 

The Band hereby agrees to lie subject to liability for the torts of its officers, 

employees, and agents acting within the scope of their employment or duties 

arising out of a law enforcement function conferred by Minnesota Statute 

Section 626.84, Subd. 1, (h) to the same extent as a municipality under Chapter 

466 of Minnesota laws. The Band further agrees, notwithstanding the provisions 

of Minnesota Statute Section 16C.05, Subd. 7, to waive its sovereign immunity 

with respect to claims arising from this liability. 

13. INSURANCE 

The Band will provide to the State, Counties and City a copy of the certificates of 

insurance it is required to file with the Minnesota Board of Peace Officers 

Standard (POST) pursuant to paragraph 2 of this agreement. For purposes of 

this agreement, the Band shall be required to obtain and maintain insurance 

policies providing coverage for commercial general liability, police professional 

liability, and automobile liability with minimum liability limits at the maximum 

amounts set forth in Minnesota Statute Section 466.04. Failure to maintain the 

insurance coverage required by this agreement shall cause immediate 

termination of the agreement. The Band shall promptly provide the Counties, 

State and City with evidence that insurance coverage required under this 

agreement is in full force and effect prior to the commencement of any of the 

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activities contemplated by this agreement. At least ten (10) days prior to the 

termination of any such coverage, the Band shall provide the Counties, State and 

Citywithevidencethat suchcoveragewillbe renewedor replacedupon 

termination with insurance that complies with these provisions. Such evidence of 

insurance shall be in the form of a certificate of insurance or in such other form 

as the Counties, State and City may reasonably request and shall contain 

sufficient information to allow the Counties, State and City to determine 

whether there is compliance with the provisions of this agreement. All policies of 

insurance required by this agreement shall have a provision that requires the 

insurer to notify the Counties, State and City in writing at the same time as its 

insured in the event of cancellation, nonrenewable, or material changes of any 

policy. Upon cancellation, nonrenewable, or material changes in any such policy 

of insurance required by this agreement. The Band shall provide written notice 

of such fact to the Counties, State and City immediately but in no event, not less 

that five (5) days from receipt of such notice from its insurer. 

14. DATA PRIVACY 

The Band hereby agrees to be subject to and abide by Minnesota Statute 13,82 

and any other laws of the state relating to data practices of law enforcement 

agencies. 

15. MEMBER ENROLLMENT INFORMATION 

Upon request of a County Sheriff, the State Patrol or the City Police 

Department, the Band agrees to provide information as to whether an identified 

individual is or is not an enrolled member of the Leech Lake Band. Such request 

by a Sheriff or Police Department shall be made only for the purpose of 

determining whether the State of Minnesota has subject matter jurisdiction for 

the purpose of prosecution. 

16. DESIGNATED CONTACT POSITIONS 

The designated position of each party for the purposed of coordinating 

communications and receiving written notices under this agreement shall be as 

follows: 

a. Beltrami County: The Beltrami County Sheriff's Office, Law 

Enforcement Center, 613 Minnesota Avenue NW, Bemidji, MN 56601. 

b. (_ass County: The Cuss County Sheriff's Office, PO Box 1119, Walker, 

MN, 56484. 

c. Hubbard County: The Hubbard County Sheriff's Office, 305 Court 

Street, Park Rapids, MN 56470. 

d. Itasca County: The Itasca County Sheriff's Office, 440 1st Avenue NE, 

Grand Rapids, MN 55477. 

e. Leech Lake Band: Department of Public Safety, Division of Enforcement 

Services, 6530 Highway #2 NW, Cass Lake, MN 56633. 

f. Cas_ Lake Police Department: Municipal Building, PO Box Cass Lake, 

MN, 56633. 

g. State of Minnesota: Attorney General's Office, 525 Park Street, Suite 

500, St. Paul, MN 55103 

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17. INDEMNIFICATION 

TheBand,the Countiesand the Cityagreesto defend,indemnifyand hold 

harmless the Band, the Counties, the City and the State for claims or damages, 

including reasonable attorney fees, attributable to the acts or omissions of that 

party's officers, agents or employees arising out of the performance of this 

agreement. The State is responsible for its own acts and behavior and the results 

thereof.The State'sliability is governedby the MinnesotaTort Claims Act, 

Minn. Star. § 3.736 and other applicable laws. The Counties' and the City's 

liability is governed by the Minnesota Municipal Tort Claims Act, Minn. Stat. 

ch.466. 

18. EFFECT OF AGREEMENT 

This agreement is limited to law enforcement authority only, and nothing in this 

agreement shall affect any other jurisdictional relationship between th_ parties. 

Nothing in this agreement shall entitle the Band to any fine or penalty revenue 

allocation under Minnesota Statute Section 487.33. 

19. PRIOR AGREEMENTS 

This agreement shall replace any and all prior or contemporaneous agreements 

between the parties with respect to law enforcement activities on the Leech Lake 

Reservation. 

20. SEVERABILITY 

The provisions of this agreement are severable and, subject to Minnesota Statute 

Section 626.93, should any provision herein be held to be invalid or 

unenforceable, the remainder of this agreement shall remain in effect. 

21. TERMINATION 

This agreement may be terminated by any party, with or without cause, effective 

immediately upon written notice to the other parties. In the event that any party 

terminates this agreement, the Band shall cease to act as a state law enforcement 

agency under Minnesota Statute Section 626.84 and 626.93, in the jurisdictions 

of the terminating party. In the event that this agreement is terminated by one 

party, the ownership of any equipment which is jointly procured by the parties 

for the purpose of this agreement shall be distributed between the parties as 

their interests appear. 

22. AMENDMENTS 

This agreement shall not be amended except by written instrument executed by 

the signatories below, or their successor in office, and attached to this 

agreement. 

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23. _EFFECTIVE DATE 

This agreementshall be effectiveon 2000,and shall remain in 

effect unless terminated as provided in this agreement. 

24. _REVIEW COMMITTEE 

In order to avoid conflict, to enhance law enforcement on the Leech Lake 

Reservation, to aid in dispute resolution, and to evaluate the ongoing 

effectiveness of this agreement, the parties agree that a committee shall be 

- comprised of designated representatives from the Band, County, State and City. 

The committee shall meet at least quarterly and as needed and at all times in 

places as may be mutually agreed upon. In any event, the committee shall meet 

eleven (11) months after the effective date of this agreement. The committee 

shall then provide a written report to each party of this agreement concerning 

the ongoing implementation of this agreement. The committee shall also make 

recommendations as to any proposed amendments of this agreement or its 

termination. 

LEECH LAKE BAND OF OJIBWE INDIANS 

Dated: 7,000 by: _I.x._ " 

Dated: 2000 bY:L_nd_on _retary-Treasurer Dated:/0-09"--2000 by: //a/_#_ j y_ __._/_/A 

Director ofP'ul_e S_fety / -

Approved as to form and e_cution 

for' the Leech Lake Bandk,.z 

Dated: I© / 5_] 2000 bY:Att_.ney 

_BELTRAMI COUNTY _ _ 

D atedO_/'-&F 2000 by: _-_/X_ "_ 

Chairman of the Board of 

Corn/missioners _ /). 

_unty Aclminittrator -

Dated:/_'_ - 2000 by: 

Keith Winger, Sheriff 
Approvedastoformandex_ . 

Dated:_O-ff1 2000 bY:TimFa" Fa'_ver,vc__er, 

CASS COUNTY. _ 

Dated: 

.. Chairman of the'Boa_ of 

Cotnmissioners 

Dated: 2000 by: Bob Yochum, Adn_nistra or 

Dated: I [0-_-_-' 2000 by: Ran y Fishe_, Sheriff f_d_i,_/__e _

Approved as to form and execution 

Dated: [0-( 2000 by: _ _ _/_¢/_._ 

Earl Maus, County Attorney 

2000 by:_ _:_...#__ 

_UBBARD COUNTy

Ch_'it_an of the Board of 

Commissioners 

ooo < 

Dated: 2000 by:. 

Jack Paul, Administrator 

Gary Millsl Sheriff 

Approved as to form and execution 

Dated: f O-_f_2000 by: ) /"_ 

(_reg LaWson, County Attorney 

ITASCA COUNTY/_/// (_7/Jj _,t./)_/ I ,/ / 

Dated: 2000 by: ,,__ _:_:_'Z_>/-_/i2/d 4£/_ _ _.'_ 

Chairman of the Board of 

Commissioners 

@lson, _d_nistrator 

9 
Pat Medure, Sheriff 

Approved as to form and execution 

Dated: I_- S- 2o0o uy:_ -------.. 

. Jac_h_/)_ty Attorney 

c,TYOFCASS L 

Mawr _ ,yDiana M_cck [ -

City of Cass Lake Administrator 

Cass Lake, M_56633 

Chief}_I_ice 

PO box 877 

Cass Lake, MN 56633 

Approved as to form and execution 

Dated: I(._- _, 2000 by: ;_ (-_-_ 

Rebecca S. Anderson 

City of Cass Lake Attorney 

514 America Ave NW 

PO Box 880 

Bemidji, MN 56619-0880 

STATE OF MINNESOT__A 

Dated:/dY/"_'-2000 

' / 

by: U_--_,___ //__ __ _j_i_/_._ 

_.e_eCr_>ch_;fo'(M_'S_Ae_it_ol 

. Approved as to form and e e uti - i 

• Atkr_y...._ General t 

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