Today's Deseret News reports that the U.S. Attorney's Office for Utah has announced it is dropping felony peyote distribution charges against the founders of a Utah County-based Native American Church. While the announcement came one day after the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act protected a Brazilian church's use of hoasca, the decision to drop the peyote charges stemmed from an agreement with prosecutors signed two weeks ago by James "Flaming Eagle" Mooney and his wife, Linda Mooney. The agreement provided that charges would be dropped in exchange for the Mooneys agreeing to refrain from possessing, buying, using or distributing peyote "until they become members of a federally recognized tribe or there is a definitive clarification of the law regarding the use of peyote by court ruling or legislative action." Under the agreement, the Mooneys can be re-indicted on the same charges if they violate its terms. The statute of limitations were also waived on the charges.
In light of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in the O Centro case, Mooney now says he will seek to have the court throw out his agreement with prosecutors and confirm his right to use peyote in religious ceremonies. Mooney says that while he fights his agreement, members of his church should be free to resume their ceremonies without his participation. However U.S. District Attorney Criminal Division Chief Richard Lambert took the position that federal law still requires anyone who uses peyote for religious purposes to be a member of a federally recognized Indian tribe. "Congress has spoken on this," Lambert said, pointing out that unlike hoasca, which is unregulated, Congress has specifically regulated peyote. He said that anyone using peyote who is not a member of a federally recognized tribe, including members of Mooney's church, is still breaking the law.
