The Maine attorney general’s office says that a federal appeals court has upheld a ruling in favor of the state in a legal challenge brought by the Penobscot Nation over regulatory control of the Penobscot River.
In a written statement, the attorney general’s office says that the federal 1st Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston has confirmed that the state, and not the tribe, has authority to regulate paddlers, hunters and anglers on the river, which runs through reservation territory. The statement says the appeals court also recognizes that the state has not interfered with tribe’s sustenance fishing rights.
Maine Attorney Janet Mills says that the state is gratified by the court’s ruling.