Iron County May Prosecute Activists Recorded Trespassing Near Mining Site

The Iron County district attorney says he has obtained a video of people trespassing on the proposed Penokee Hills mining site, and that he may press charges.

About two weeks after the so-called mining “off-limits zone” law went into effect in January, activists posted a picture of a group of them snowshoeing in the zone. No tickets were issued and no complaints were made, and forays into what opponents of the mine call “The Forbidden Zone” gradually became commonplace.

Now, Iron County Sheriff Tony Furyk says he’s turned over a video of people in that area to Iron County District Attorney Marty Lipske.

“He’s got them on his desk. I don’t know what he’s going to do with them. They were dropped down there by law enforcement for him to review. Let’s see what direction he wants to go with it,” said Furyk.

Lipske confirmed that he is investigating the video.

“We would need to follow up with regards to any trespassing as to who exactly was in the video, when exactly when the video occurred, where the video occurred and things of that nature,” said Lipske.

Lipske said he’s aware anti-mining activists have said they’ll fight the law in court if they are prosecuted.

“I don’t want to lead anything to having more people doing this or challenging that or doing any additional trespassing on there,” said Lipske. “The law is relatively clear.”

What isn’t clear is the penalty: Lipske doesn’t know if he’d issue a ticket for trespass, have Sheriff Furyk arrest trespassers or simply give them warnings.