A recent incident between game officers of the Crow Tribe and non-Indian hunters has highlighting long-running tensions on the Montana reservation.

The officers say they were just trying to do their job on November 5 when they asked to see the permits of the hunters. There was a concern that the hunters were on tribal land.

But the non-Indians say they were harassed by "militant, armed tribal members" while on non-Indian fee land. They eventually showed the permits but say they felt threatened.

The dispute has it origins in the checkerboard system of land ownership on the reservation. Tribal members say non-Indians are hunting on tribal land without punishment while non-Indians say tribal officers are overzealous while making their rounds.

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Hunting confrontation had start in web of state and Indian laws (The Billings Gazette 2/2)