Leech Lake Tribal Council met with four arrested juveniles parents

CASS LAKE — The Leech Lake Tribal Council met Monday with parents of the four arrested juveniles in the Walker-Hackensack-Akeley School (WHA) incident Wednesday. The Tribal Council is taking time to consult with appropriate entities to evaluate how the school adminstration has handled the issues that led up to this event.

The four juveniles were arraigned Friday in Cass County District Court following the altercation with a deputy at the WHA, Cass County Attorney Christopher Strandlie reported.

The most serious charge, leveled against one juvenile male, was felony offense of fourth degree assault on a peace officer resulting in demonstrable bodily harm.

The deputy, who was kicked in the back, suffered redness, bruising and a possible fracture, according to medical reports cited by the county attorney.

According to a release, Leech Lake Tribal Chairwoman Carri Jones expressed to WHA superintendent, Dr. Mary Donohue Stetz at a community meeting Oct. 12 that the Leech Lake Reservation is available to assist in any way to help resolve the incident and further develop the relationship between Walker School and the Leech Lake Reservation.

As stated in the release, “The Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Tribal Council is committed to ensuring that the four juveniles civil rights have not been violated, safety compromised and their educational needs are met.”

According to law enforcement reports, a verbal altercation occurred between two groups of students inside the school. Law enforcement had been asked to respond to the school to help alleviate the altercation.

As officers were arriving, they observed a male party fleeing from the building; he was detained for questioning by a Cass County deputy and became verbally and physically aggressive toward the officer. Due to his conduct, a decision was made to place the male under arrest at that time. As the deputy was attempting to place him under arrest, a second male individual ran up and kicked the deputy in the back.

Medical reports indicated that redness and bruising were visible and there was a possible fracture as a result of the assault. Other officers assisted the deputy and both males were taken into custody. As officers continued to deal with the males, two female students physically fought with officers in an apparent attempt to free the males.

One juvenile male was charged with the felony offense of fourth-degree assault on a peace officer resulting in demonstrable bodily harm and misdemeanor fleeing a peace officer on foot.

The other male and two females were charged with the gross misdemeanor offense of obstructing legal process with force or violence and two of the individuals were further charged with fleeing on foot. One of the females was additionally charged with disorderly conduct for her role in the disturbance which occurred within the school. A fifth male juvenile was given a citation for disorderly conduct for his role in the incident within the school.

Due to the age of the juveniles and the level of offenses charged, state law prohibits the release of the names of the juveniles.