Oakes Appearance Adjourned Amid Questioning to Determine Ability to Represent himself

By Andy Gardner.

MASSENA – An Akwesasne man arrested during a demonstration opposing a proposed Mohawk land claim settlement had his court case adjourned while the presiding town justice was in the middle of questioning him to determine his capability to represent himself.

Gabriel J. Oakes, 58, appeared in Massena Town Court on Tuesday afternoon on charges of sixth-degree conspiracy and trespass. He and seven others were arrested May 21 during the protest on Barnhart Island that was interrupted by state police when one of them started digging with a backhoe.

Oakes was making a third appearance in town court. He has been steadfast in his refusal to accept a court-appointed lawyer or to hire one himself.

Town Justice Joseph Brown began asking Oakes a prescribed set of questions that are used to determine if defendants are able to represent themselves. Oakes was asked questions such as if he understands he’ll be going against a prosecutor who is trained in the law and with an educational and criminal background. Brown also asked if Oakes understands the charges against him.

“I don’t understand why. I comprehend what you were saying. I refuse to stand under this court on these charges,” he said.

Assistant District Attorney Matthew Abbruzzese interrupted the judge’s questions and said he “can’t make that determination” without an attorney representing Oakes through the questioning.

Oakes maintained his refusal to have a lawyer come to court with him.

“That’s your rules, not mine,” he said. “If I stand outside my circle, I commit treason.”

“I refuse to have council anywhere near me at this point,” he later added, although he did say he has a friend who is a lawyer who he spoke with sometime prior to his Tuesday afternoon appearance.

Oakes also said he wants to see a deed or bill of sale for the land on which he was arrested. Brown said that’s a matter to take up when he presents a defense. Brown adjourned his case until Oct. 22.

Two weeks ago, one of the eight arrested at Barnhart appeared in Massena Town Court and was allowed to represent herself. Marina Johnson-Zafaris, 26, did not have an attorney present during Brown’s questions, which were identical to the questions he asked Oakes. The assistant district attorney present at that appearance was Alexander Nichols, who made no objections to Johnson-Zafaris not having an attorney. She is charged with the same offenses as Oakes: sixth-degree conspiracy and trespass.

Also on Tuesday, Donald Delormier appeared for the second time on charges stemming from his arrest at the May demonstration. He’s also charged with sixth-degree conspiracy and trespass. Brown told Delormier, who did not have a lawyer, that it would be in his best interest to get one and adjourned his case until Oct. 22.

The other people facing charges related to the demonstration are Larry V. Thompson, 67; Brent Maracle, 48; Kimberly A. Terrance, 41; Isaac N. White, 42; and Dana L. Thompson, 67. They’re all charged with sixth-degree conspiracy and trespass. Larry Thompson is charged with an additional count of second-degree criminal mischief, a felony, for allegedly damaging New York Power Authority property valued over $1,500. He has previously said the digging was to begin building a foundation for Native housing on land that rightfully belongs to the Mohawk people.

White was working as a reporter for the Akwesasne newspaper Indian Time covering the developing event when he was arrested. He is seeking dismissal of his charges on First Amendment grounds.

The demonstrators are rejecting attorneys and opting to represent themselves. They maintain that the court has no authority over them because they are Native people, Onkwehonweh in their language, and were arrested on land that rightfully belongs to them.

In 2022, a judge ruled New York state unlawfully took thousands of acres of Mohawk land in the 1800s. Negotiations for a settlement have been ongoing between Albany and U.S., Canadian and traditional Mohawk councils. The federal government also sold large swathes of the reservation without congressional approval, in violation of the Indian Non-Intercourse Act of 1796. It stands as the American law today. It says Native land cannot be sold without an affirmative vote of Congress. Those disputed lands include Barnhart Island.

The protesters demand fair compensation for Barnhart Island, integral to the Moses-Saunders power dam, which has generated billions of dollars in electricity for the U.S. and Canada.

They also seek redress for generations of pollution-related illnesses caused by upstream industrial activities by Alcoa, Reynolds Metals and General Motors, which for decades used large amounts of PCBs – known carcinogens. – in their operations. PCBs, polychlorinated biphenyls, were used in industrial products before being banned in the United States in 1976.