Camp Easton has its day in court

COEUR d'ALENE - Representatives of different scouting interests faced off Tuesday afternoon, when a First District judge heard arguments over whether a Boy Scout camp on Lake Coeur d'Alene is legally barred from ever being sold or traded.

Camp Easton Forever, LLC has filed a lawsuit against the Boy Scouts Inland Northwest Council, with the claim that a proposal to give Camp Easton to a luxury developer, in exchange for a new camp on the lake, is illegal.

Other plaintiffs have joined the suit, including two scouts and a charitable foundation claiming donations for the camp were accepted under fraudulent terms.

Speaking before Judge John Luster and a courtroom packed with roughly 50 members of the public on Tuesday, plaintiffs' attorney Scott Reed urged for a quick judgment.

"We are literally standing on the edge of the cliff of this happening," Reed said, referring to the INC boards' voting to proceed with a purchase option agreement.

Attorney Kathlene Kolts, also representing Camp Easton Forever, rehashed the organization's argument that the camp property is part of a charitable trust, established when F.W. Fitze donated 130 acres to the Idaho Panhandle Council of Boy Scouts in 1929.

Kolts said although a trust isn't mentioned in the property's deed, Fitze's hopes for a permanent scout camp there was recorded in the minutes of a '29 meeting with the IPC.

"Donor intent is paramount," Kolts said, adding that society in the '20s would not have been as explicit in documenting a trust as would be expected today.

"Could he have sold this property to the Idaho Panhandle Council? Yes? But did he sell it to them? No," she said. "He gave this 132 acres of property on the lake because why? It's stated right here, to make sure the property is used in perpetuity as a camp for boys."

When Luster questioned if Kolts considered that the land swap was being pursued in the best interest of the scouts, she pointed out that the minutes refer to the property as the "best site" in the area.

"They've all abided the terms of this trust until now," Kolts said of the INC operating the property as a camp.

Attorney Michael Ramsden, representing INC, pointed out that operating boy scout camps is the INC's job, and has nothing to do with upholding a trust.

Ramsden delved into the details of trust law, and said there is no evidence a trust has been established for the property.

He pointed out that the minutes of the '29 meeting were not signed by Fitze.

"The only signature by Mr. Fitze is on the deed, which is absolute on its face," Ramsden said.

He further contended that the plaintiffs don't have standing to file suit against the INC, as there is no "particularized interest or injury" they will suffer if the camp is traded or sold.

Ramsden also denied that Shikar Safari Club International Foundation was defrauded when it donated $45,000 to the INC for the camp's shooting ranges in the late 2000s, after Discovery Land Company had approached INC about a land swap.

Even if the swap has been pursued, the attorney noted, everything the donations were intended to fund was still built.

"There is no evidence of any misrepresentation" that would "give rise to the claim of fraud," Ramsden said.

Luster said he would review the arguments and deliver a judgment within 30 days.

He denied Kolts' request to forbid a trade or sale occurring before then. Luster noted it would be "ill advised" to undergo a major real estate transaction while the matter was pending in court.

Keith Clemans, committee chair with Troop 201, said after the hearing that he wasn't surprised so many scouts in uniform attended.

"Camp Easton means so much, especially to troops in Idaho," Clemans said. "That's their legacy."

Tim McCandless, INC scout executive, said the INC wants to do what is the best for the scouts.

"We've gone through a deliberate and open process, and we'll continue to do that in the future," McCandless said.