Trustees continue to investigate beach access issue

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An aerial shot of the Westwoods property, located in Hampton Bays, where Mr. Corwin was confronted by Shinnecock security guards last summer.

Southampton Village resident Timothy Corwin is still awaiting an explanation as to why he was accosted—and allegedly threatened—by a security guard for the Shinnecock Indian Nation while walking along the beach last summer on the tribe’s Westwoods property, which overlooks Peconic Bay in Hampton Bays.

“They said they had the authority to drop me where I stood,” Mr. Corwin, who later reported the incident to the New York State Police and Southampton Town Trustees, said of the lone security guard. “I would take that as a physical threat, but I didn’t see any point in getting into fisticuffs with the guy.”

According to Mr. Corwin, he was walking on the beach below the high water mark—an area that is traditionally governed by the Southampton Town Trustees, in accordance with the Dongan Patent, and accessible to all town residents.

Mr. Corwin’s encounter was not an isolated incident. Last month, four people were injured in a brawl after authorities said two Shinnecock tribe members approached a group of young adults who were hanging out on the beach along the Westwoods property. State Police said the fight started after the two Shinnecocks told group members that they were trespassing on tribal property. One of the victims had to be airlifted to the hospital after being hit in the head with an unidentified object, and two other men suffered injuries after they were swatted with burning logs from a nearby bonfire. One of the Shinnecocks suffered a broken wrist during the melee, police said.

Beverly Jensen, a spokeswoman for the Shinnecock Indian Nation, said this week that tribal leaders refuse to comment on either incident involving alleged trespassers, and on beach access issues in general.

At question is whether or not the Dongan Patent, which dates back to 1686 and grants all town freeholders access and rights to common underwater land, has any authority on property owned by the Shinnecocks. Unlike the tribe’s 800-acre reservation, which is sovereign land and not subject to local zoning codes, a federal judge ruled last year that the 75-acre Westwoods property, on which Shinnecock leaders had threatened to build a casino, is not sovereign land. Therefore, the Hampton Bays property is subject to local zoning laws and, presumably, the jurisdiction of the Dongan Patent.

After contacting State Police, Mr. Corwin said he alerted the Town Trustees about the incident and they assured him that they were investigating the matter.

In past matters involving jurisdiction over beaches, the Town Trustees have been aggressive in protecting their position, even going to court in some instances to confirm the Dongan Patent’s relevance. But in this instance, the Trustees appear to be treading carefully.

Jon Semlear, the president of the Town Trustees, deferred all questions about beach access rights on the Westwoods property to fellow Trustee Eric Shultz who has been extensively investigating the issue. Mr. Semlear explained that Mr. Shultz had done more research and was better educated on the subject. “I don’t want to make a tense situation worse,” Mr. Semlear said on Tuesday.

Mr. Shultz said this week that the board is still investigating the issue and plans on inviting Shinnecock leaders to the board’s next meeting, scheduled for Monday, July 21, at 1 p.m. to discuss beach access rights. Shinnecock leaders have not yet informed the Trustees if they intend to attend the meeting, according to Mr. Shultz.

He said he hopes the meeting, if it takes place, will start an ongoing dialogue between the Trustees and Shinnecocks and result in an amicable resolution. Mr. Shultz added that deciphering the law and figuring out beach access rights is of utmost importance to Trustees.

“We need to bring out the information we have and present it in an open session about who has rights,” he said. “People have the right to know where they can and cannot go.”

Though they have declined to be interviewed, Shinnecock leaders appear to maintain that the Dongan Patent should not apply to any land that is owned by them, as the Nation was established even before the colonial document.

Undermining that argument is a ruling last year by U.S. District Court Judge Joseph F. Bianco. He determined that the Westwoods property, which is located north of Newtown Road, cannot be considered sovereign tribal land. In his October 2007 ruling, Judge Bianco said the land cannot be sovereign because the tribe had relinquished its ownership for a time in the 1600s. Therefore, the judge said, a gaming facility cannot be built on the property once the Shinnecocks receive federal recognition.

According to the 130-page ruling, the Westwoods property is not exempt from Southampton Town zoning laws and must comply with residential zoning. That would mean that Southampton Town residents are allowed to be on the beach, below the high water mark, as is true throughout the town. If this is the case, then the Shinnecocks would not be within their rights to block people from walking below the high water mark.