Locals cited for digging up sites

Locals cited for digging up sites

Dec. 16, 2000

By Janelle Holden
Journal Staff Writer

Four local residents appeared in federal district court in Durango Thursday on federal citations of disturbing an archaeological site.

On Sept. 16, Donald Wayne Johnson and Donald Leonard Johnson, a father and son from Dolores, were cited for digging in an archaeological site listed on the National Register of Historic Sites.

The Johnsons were observed digging near McPhee Reservoir on national-forest land by a Forest Service archaeologist and a Southern Ute tribal member.

A second incident occurred on Oct. 1, when BLM law-enforcement agent Lanny Wagner allegedly caught Danny Keith Rose, 51, of Dolores, and Tammy Woosley, 40, of Cortez, digging on the other side of McPhee Reservoir.

Woosley and Rose were cited for digging in an archaeological site listed on the National Register and disturbing prehistoric human remains.

On Thursday, the arraignments of the four were continued until Feb. 13, when they will enter a plea.

The citations are a Class B misdemeanor, with penalties of up to six months in jail and/or a $5,000 fine and fines for restitution.

Restitution costs could include the cost of an archaeological assessment of the digging and damage to the sites.

Brenda Schultz, a special law-enforcement agent with the Mancos-Dolores Ranger District, said that although it’s not unusual for unlawful digging in archaeological sites to occur in this area, "It’s unusual to actually have a witness catch the individual in the act."