Judge strikes down restraining order against Ramapoughs

HACKENSACK — A state Superior Court judge has struck down a temporary restraining order that barred the Ramapough Lenape Nation from erecting tepees and gathering for ceremonies on its property in Mahwah.

Judge Charles Powers Jr. said Mahwah, which had sought the restraining order, failed to prove that the tribe’s actions demonstrate “imminent and irreparable harm,” according to his decision.

Powers, however, also dismissed an argument made by the tribe that it is entitled to relief from Mahwah's zoning regulations because it has freedom of religion, writing that the law “does not provide religious institutions with immunity from land use regulations.” Powers noted that the tribe had not filed the necessary paperwork with the township’s zoning department to use its land for religious purposes.

Going forward, Powers ruled that the township is “free to enforce its zoning laws and regulations without an injunction.”

A court hearing scheduled for this Friday to determine whether the restraining order should be made permanent has been canceled.

COURT:Ramapoughs argue for lifting of restraining order

RESIDENTS:Complaints prompt police visits to Ramapough camp

COMPLAINT:Mahwah to Ramapoughs: Remove tepees immediately

Ramapough Chief Dwaine Perry said Monday that he was "pleased" with the judge's decision, which was dated June 15.

Mayor Bill Laforet said Monday that “there are no winners and losers in the decision.”

The township requested a restraining order against the tribe in May after officials said the Ramapoughs did not obtain zoning permits to use their property on Halifax Road as a place of public assembly and to build tepees, among other violations.

Township officials first became aware of the tepees in November after complaints from residents of the Polo Club, an affluent neighborhood adjacent to the tribe's property. Residents have filed multiple noise and domestic disturbance complaints with police in recent months.

The township began issuing summonses to the tribe in December, accusing it of failing to obtain zoning permits for the tepees and of moving soil without a permit.

In January, township officials agreed to a 60-day stay of the summonses so the tribe could submit zoning and site plan applications, on the condition that the tribe not erect additional structures.

But Township Attorney Brian Chewcaskie, who could not be reached for comment Monday, has said the Ramapoughs continued to build on their property and host gatherings, despite the court summonses.

Since the beginning of the year, the Ramapoughs have piled up more than a dozen unanswered municipal court summonses, forcing the township’s hand in a higher court, Chewcaskie has said.

They are due in Municipal Court on July 27, according to Mayor Bill Laforet. 

On Monday, Perry indicated that the tribe would continue holding gatherings on its property.

"We're not going to be doing anything differently than we have been for 25 years," he said.

A zoning application filed by the tribe in April was denied because it lacked a site plan application and other documents, according to court filings.

Thomas Williams, an attorney for the tribe, said the judge's decision provides his client “the relief it was seeking” to proceed with a use variance application that was submitted to the township last week. The tribe has applied to use its property for religious and cultural purposes, a sign, Williams said, that the Ramapoughs are “not here to fight the town."

Laforet denied that the township is targeting the tribe at the behest of residents, an accusation the tribe has made.

“It’s only ever been about the zoning violations,” he said.  

Staff Writer Sarah Nolan contributed to this story.

Email: nobile@northjersey.com