Investigation Report
Conclusions
Transcript of Dialogue with Ranger Steve Dodd
Hi Javier,
Below is what I plan to submit in the report based on your complaint.
Would you please review it for accuracy and let me know what I may have
misinterpreted?
Background and Interviews: This incident occurred on May 25, 2009 at
approximately 1500 hours along Going to the Sun Road approximately 15 miles
west of the West Entrance to the park in the Avalanche Campground area.
The complainant Javier Batista is a resident of Spain but has had a series
of Visa’s allowing him to be in the United States since 1996 living in the
Los Angeles area and attending the University of Southern California. He
left school in the fall of 2008 to travel Western National Parks eventually
visiting the Glacier area. He has remained in the Glacier area since
January of 2008. Mr. Batista is reportedly blind in his left eye and has
10% vision remaining in his right eye. He has chosen to rely on his
bicycle for transportation around the Western United States.
I have uninterruptedly been living in the U.S. since 1996. If there is any need to make reference to my Spanish origin and nationality, given that the English dictionary defines 'resident' as somebody that lives in a place for a long period of time, I would consider more accurate to say that I am a citizen of Spain that has been residing in the U.S. since 1996.
I am actually blind on my right eye, while my left eye keeps about 10% vision.
I think it is relevant to make clear that I did not have my driver's credit card. I had a few credit cards with me, all issued to my name.
I was not quite asked to accompany the rangers to the headquarter. They never asked for my agreement. I was required to board the vehicle that was going to take me to the headquarters. I was just informed they would take me to the headquaters.
I don't think it is quite accurate to say the investigation continued in the headquaters. Rather, the theft investigation ended at Avalanche campground. No further investigation on the disappearance of the driver's $75 and credit card was ever conducted at the headquarters. As soon as we arrived to the headquarters, Ranger Dodd, consistent with his threats, started a series of unrelated investigations; my boots, my immigration record, the places where I had stayed, my access pass, etc.
According to Mr. Batista, he was interviewed, interrogated and harassed for
approximately two more hours while sitting in wet clothing in a cold area
of the headquarters building.
I was kept at the headquarters more than two more hours. I think I should have been at least three hours. I arrived to jail around 8:30pm-9pm.
That the area was cold is a subjective opinion that other people may argue. It is, however, an undisputable, objective fact that more accurately describes the conditions in which I was kept, that I was shivering the whole time. I, therefore, would prefer to make that clear. I believe Ranger Dodd's tactics were to break me down physically, if not psychologically.
Mr. Batista claimed Ranger Dodd was talking
on the telephone to at least two different parties – one of whom was Mr.
Batista’s former roommate in Los Angeles. Mr. Batista claimed to overhear
Ranger Dodd refer to him as “a pain” in one conversation.
I did not overhear any conversation where Ranger Dodd referred to me as 'a pain'. Rather, Ranger Dodd blurted out those words directly to my face, in the presence of the other rangers. He expressed that view several times.
Ranger Dodd kept an unreasonably long phone conversation with my old roommate, inconsistent with the explanation that he needed to verify a few facts. The conversation was part of his relentless efforts to find something he could hurt me with.
Mr. Batista reportedly hadn’t eaten since breakfast and was about to leave to get
something to eat when he was told by Ranger Dodd that they were almost
done. Ranger Dodd then wrote out a mandatory appearance citation for use of
an illegally obtained Interagency Access Pass requiring Mr. Batista to
appear before a U.S. Magistrate on August 21, 2009. Mr. Batista claimed
that he would not accept the citation without discussing the situation with
his lawyer. According to Mr. Batista, Ranger Dodd refused him time to
consult with his attorney and gave him ten seconds to decide whether he’d
accept the citation before placing him under arrest. Mr. Batista went on
to state that Ranger Dodd then started counting backwards from ten. Mr.
Batista stated that he can be stubborn and was angry at being coerced to
accept something he didn’t fully understand and felt Ranger Dodd was true
to his word in finding a way to make things hard for him – all due to the
fact that Mr. Batista refused to say that he had stolen money. Mr. Batista
was placed under arrest and transported to the Flathead County Detention
Center.
I am not sure I understand what you mean with 'being coerced to accept something I did not fully understand' (I don't know what were my words that led you to write that). I did not quite understand why I was being cited. I, however, fully understood Ranger Dodd's threats and would be ready to admit to be very stubborn and get angry if anybody tries to intimidate me, coerces me, as Ranger Dodd did.
For complete accuracy, I need to say that after I was arrested (after Ranger Dodd ended his 10-second count), I was eventually allowed to make a call to my lawyer. As I was not able to get hold of him, I tried to make another call, but was told time was up. One of the rangers kindly advised me that if Ranger Dodd would still give me the option to take the citation and leave, I should definitely "take it". I was however not given that option anymore. Instead, I was kept under arrest and directly transported to jail.
Conclusion
In summary, there is no doubt to me that my citation and subsequent arrest was not the consequence of a routine inspection or investigation that led to the conclusion that the law had been broken, but rather the result of a continuous, determined, tireless, deliberate and fully committed effort to hurt me, because I did not admit I had stolen any monies and refused to give out $75. That should not come to any surprise, because that is exactly what Ranger Dodd promised. Considering what was the course of the investigation and interrogation, I do not see any other conclusion is possible. After unsuccessfully investigating a few other issues, Ranger Dodd started yet another new investigation and inquired about entrance fee payment:
Dialogue with Ranger Steve Dodd
- "How did you get into the park?"
- "I have a pass".
- "How come they don't remember you at the gate?".
- "I don't know, I even asked them a few questions. She even slid my card, I believe...".
- "OK, so what pass do you have".
I handed my pass to Ranger Dodd and he left, back to his office. After a while he returned.
- "How come you have this pass? This pass is only for citizens".
- "No, it's also for residents".
- "No, it's only for citizens. I spoke with the person who issued you the pass, he said it's only for citizens".
- "No, it's also for residents!".
Ranger Dodd went back to his office and returned after a while.
- "OK, what is your permanent address?".
- "1826 N Harvard Blvd #21, Los Angeles CA 90027".
- "Are you in the lease, are you paying there any rent now?".
- "I don't think so, I left in September 2008 and have been riding my bicycle since then".
- "So you lied to this federal investigator!".
- "Why?".
- "You said your permanent address is in Los Angeles, but you are not paying any rent or mortgage there. What is your permanent address, where you are paying rent or mortgage?".
- "During these last months that I have been riding my bicycle, I have stayed in hundred different places and have not been paying a monthly rent or mortgage".
- "So you are not paying any rent or mortgage at the present time?".
- "I don't think so".
- "Well, if you are not paying any rent or mortgage at the moment, you are not a resident and therefore you obtained and entered the park illegally".
This dialogue, which accuracy can be confirmed by one other ranger present in the room, shows very clearly that Ranger Dodd was not trying to enforce the law, but rather was looking for anything he could use to hurt me. It shows that Ranger Dodd had no real belief that I had broken the law. I would think that in order to enforce the law, in order to have a reasonable belief that the law has been broken, a minimum insight of what the law says is necessary. It is not that Ranger Dodd was ignorant of what the law says, it is that what he said, particularly his conclusion, just did not make any sense. I think it shows he was desperate to hurt me. I think that, if not the entire dialogue, at least Ranger Dodd's conclusion and justification of why he had to cite me is relevant to the report: "Well, if you are not paying any rent or mortgage at the moment, you are not a resident and therefore you obtained and entered the park illegally".
Finally, National Park Services has always had a very loose policy enforcing national park entrance fee payments. While I fully acknowledge National Park Services' right to ask for payment or proof of payment of national park entrance fee, I have been in national parks many, many times, and have never been asked or seen any park officer ask anybody for proof of payment of park entrance fee.
In fact, Glacier Park is probably the best example of the above. Most of Glacier Park's entrance stations are not manned most of the year. That, however, does not mean that no entrance fee payment is required during those times. During the last winter and spring, I have had several different encounters, under all sort of different circumstances (from 'very friendly' to 'not so friendly'), with park rangers. I was never asked to show proof of payment. I have been standing, alongside my bicycle, at entrance stations several times. As I was standing there, many cars passed. Seeing that the station was not manned, nobody ever stopped to make any payment. This fact is very well known by park rangers. Park rangers do not routinely ask for proof of payment of entrance fees. That is also well known by park visitors. It is of no coincidence that Ranger Dodd was the first ranger to ever ask for proof of payment; it was part of his efforts to hurt me because I did not admit to steal any monies and refused to give out $75.
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