January 29, 2013 — A lawsuit brought by a Mashpee Wampanoag tribe member asserting his personal aboriginal fishing rights will be allowed to go forward, according to a Plymouth Superior Court judge's ruling.
David Greene of Buzzards Bay sued the town of Mattapoisett and Kenneth Pacheco, a former deputy shellfish warden, claiming his rights were violated in 2010 when Pacheco confiscated Greene's catch of quahogs. Greene, a member of the tribe's natural resources commission, also alleges he was assaulted in the process, though a criminal court exonerated Pacheco of an assault charge.
Pacheco is accused in the lawsuit of making derogatory comments about Greene with regard to his status as a tribe member, an alleged violation of his civil rights, according to court documents.
In a 34-page ruling issued Jan. 18, Judge Richard Chin found that Greene can proceed with his case against Pacheco and the town.
The case is being closely watched because it could set a precedent for how coastal towns have to deal with the fishing rights of tribe members. If Green eventually wins the suit, it could ultimately have implications for the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe's casino plans in Southeastern Massachusetts. There is precedent for the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs to consider fishing rights as a way of demonstrating a tribe's historic ties to land.
Read the full story in the New Bedford Standard Times