The U.S. Department of Justice has dropped criminal charges against Charles and Heather Maude, a ranching couple from western South Dakota, following months of public outcry, congressional pressure, and support from agricultural advocacy groups across the West.  

The Maudes had been facing individual felony charges of theft of government property in connection with approximately 50 acres of land—25 acres cultivated, and another 25 grazed—that sit on the boundary of their family ranch and the Buffalo Gap National Grasslands. The disputed fence line has been in place for roughly 75 years.  

On April 28, 2025, the Trump administration announced the dismissal of the charges,  emphasizing the administration's commitment to ending what it described as "government regulation by prosecution."  

“The prosecution of the Maudes should never have happened... it is a fire bell in the night. We must awaken to what it means that this appeal and recourse were even necessary at all,” Rollins said in an April 30 press conference following the release of criminal charges. "We are ending regulation by prosecution in America and investigating how and why this wrongful prosecution... ever occurred in the first place. We must ensure that our farmers and our ranchers have not and will not be targeted for living the American way of life." 

In her address to the media, Heather Maude spoke on behalf of her family, noting she and her husband have nearly 250 years of production agriculture experience between their two families.  

“We are both fifth-generation farmers and ranchers—our families have a combined 250-plus years in production agriculture. 

“When this unnecessary grievance came to our family, we knew that we were innocent of any wrongdoing, and we sought to find a resolution, and that was not forthcoming from the other side.” 

She continued, “Our neighbors stood up for us at the threat of retribution to their own operations… and we are so thankful for the efforts that are being rolled out today to help make progress in the right direction.” 

According to court documents, the Maudes were indicted June 24, 2024—just weeks after trying to resolve the issue administratively with local USFS officials. They say they were blindsided by the criminal indictments after initiating conversations about clarifying the fence line and even proposing a land trade. 

The charges alleged the couple knowingly used the land without authorization, a claim that Heather’s mother, Randi Hamilton, said fails to account for generations of shared understanding and cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service (USFS). 

WyFB President Todd Fornstrom had previously written a letter of support to Secretary Rollins and said the outcome of the case sets a meaningful precedent.  

“It’s critical for agencies to work with long-time permittees to resolve conflicts without dragging them into the judicial system,” Fornstrom said. “WyFB policy opposes the abuse of power and overreach of any enforcement or investigative department of any U.S. Executive Branch Agency, including USFS. WyFB also supports strict consequence of permanent ban of federal employment of any individual found guilty of abusing power and to be held responsible for any financial cost incurred.”  

WyFB Executive Vice President Kerin Clark said the Maude case highlights the broader issue of unchecked government enforcement. 

 “We are thankful to see this abuse of power by the federal government overturned,” Clark said. “The government overreach and abuse of power asserted against the Maude family should have never happened. The efforts by this administration to end regulation through prosecution in America are welcomed and necessary for American citizens.”  

Though the criminal charges have been dropped, questions remain in the case and the way this was handled by the Forest Service cast a long shadow over the regulatory process. “Agencies need to provide avenues to remedy situations like this in a manner that is efficient, effective and appropriate,” said Fornstrom. “If honest efforts to resolve an issue lead to indictments, that breaks down trust—and that hurts everyone.” 

In response to the dismissal of the criminal charges in the case, Sec. Rollins announced the launch of a portal for farmers and ranchers to report such incidents going forward. 

“We are excited to announce USDA is launching a portal at USDA.gov for all American farmers, ranchers, and producers who are subject to similar egregious lawfare from the Biden administration,” said Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins. “We will work with our counterparts to address any other government overreach in situations like this." 

“We applaud the announcement that efforts are in progress to find resolution to remedy situations like this to avoid regulation through prosecution and the wrongful targeting of hard-working American citizens,” Clark concluded.