Judge rules federal government owes nearly $28 million to North Dakota
for pipeline protests
[April 24, 2025] By
JACK DURA
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A federal judge on Wednesday found the state of
North Dakota entitled to nearly $28 million for responding to protests
of the Dakota Access oil pipeline in 2016 and 2017 — a win for the state
in its multiyear effort to recoup the costs from the federal government.
The state filed the lawsuit in 2019, seeking $38 million for policing
the protests. The sometimes-chaotic demonstrations drew international
attention for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s opposition to the
pipeline’s Missouri River crossing upstream of the tribe’s reservation.
The tribe has long opposed the pipeline, fearing an oil spill polluting
its water supply.
A trial played out over several weeks in early 2024 in federal court in
Bismarck, the state capital. People who testified included former North
Dakota governors Doug Burgum, who took office in December 2016 during
the protests’ height, and Jack Dalrymple, whose administration responded
to the protests’ early months.
U.S. District Judge Daniel Traynor found the United States liable to the
state on all claims and for more than $27.8 million in damages.
The judge wrote: “The bottom line: United States had a mandatory
procedure, it did not follow that procedure, and harm occurred to the
state of North Dakota. The law allows reimbursement for this harm. More
than that, the rule of law requires this Court to hold the United States
liable to remind it of its role in the larger picture of ensuring peace,
not chaos.”
Thousands of people camped and demonstrated against the pipeline near
the crossing for months, resulting in hundreds of arrests.
Sometimes-violent clashes occurred between protesters and law
enforcement officers. Law enforcement officers from around the state and
region responded to the protests.
The protest camps were cleared in February 2017. An attorney for the
state said the protests ended in a response of more than seven months
involving 178 agencies, resulting in 761 arrests and requiring four days
of cleanup of the camp to remove millions of pounds of trash.
In a joint statement, Gov. Kelly Armstrong and Attorney General Drew
Wrigley said: “As outlined in trial testimony and Judge Traynor’s
ruling, decisions made by the Obama administration emboldened protestors
and ultimately caused millions of dollars in damage to North Dakota,
while endangering the health and safety of North Dakota communities,
families and law enforcement officers who responded to the protests.”
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Military veterans walk onto a closed bridge to protest across from
police protecting the Dakota Access oil pipeline site in Cannon
Ball, N.D., Thursday, Dec. 1, 2016. (AP Photo/David Goldman, File)
 The state's claims included
negligence, gross negligence, civil trespass and public nuisance.
Attorneys for the government said at trial that U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers officials “acted reasonably given limited options at their
disposal” during the protests, and that the state's claim is
“greatly overstated." The government asked the judge to find a lack
of legal jurisdiction for the state's claims, that the state hasn't
proven its claims and is not entitled to damages.
The Associated Press sent an email to an attorney who argued for the
federal government at trial seeking comment.
The pipeline has been transporting oil since June 2017. Many state
government officials and industry leaders support the pipeline as
crucial infrastructure in the country’s No. 3 oil-producing state.
The pipeline carries roughly 5% of the United States' daily oil
production.
In 2017, the pipeline company, Energy Transfer, donated $15 million
to help cover the response costs. That same year, the U.S. Justice
Department gave a $10 million grant to the state for reimbursing the
response. The judge found the former to be a gift and reduced the
latter from the state's total recovery.
Then-President Donald Trump denied a 2017 request from the state for
the federal government to cover the costs through a disaster
declaration.
The pipeline is operating while a court-ordered environmental review
of the river crossing is carried out.
A North Dakota jury recently found Greenpeace liable for defamation
and other claims brought by the pipeline's builder in connection
with protest activities, with damages surpassing $660 million
against three Greenpeace organizations.
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