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Tomb of the Unknown Soldier & Peace Memorial, Custer Battlefield Museum, Garryowen, Montana. Image by Trekkie9001, sourced through Wikipedia.org.

Custer Museum director sues feds over raids

Catherine Saunders-Watson
Catherine Saunders-Watson
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier & Peace Memorial, Custer Battlefield Museum, Garryowen, Montana. Image by Trekkie9001, sourced through Wikipedia.org.
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier & Peace Memorial, Custer Battlefield Museum, Garryowen, Montana. Image by Trekkie9001, sourced through Wikipedia.org.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) – The founding director of the Custer Battlefield Museum in Montana has filed a lawsuit alleging that two dozen armed federal agents violated his constitutional rights when they raided the museum, his home and other businesses in 2005 and again in 2008.

Chris Kortlander’s lawsuit targets the individual agents who allegedly “terrorized” him while making accusations that he was illegally trading American Indian artifacts. The investigation was eventually dropped and Kortlander was never charged with any crime.

He filed his lawsuit Monday in Montana. However, the case could have far-reaching impacts for other dealers and collectors who were raided as part of a sweeping federal investigation into artifact trafficking that led to felony charges against more than two dozen people in Utah, Colorado and New Mexico.

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AP-WS-12-06-10 1207EST