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Ernie Wayne terTelgte in court

Ernie Wayne terTelgte likes to style himself as a Montana mountain man, dressing in buckskins, boots and tricornered hats and sometimes bearing an old muzzle-loading musket. He likes to elaborate upon his theories about so-called in a florid 18^th-century style. But it isn鈥檛 a silly nostalgia act. The Bozeman man has, in fact, been challenging Montana鈥檚 courts and legal system in the name of his extremist belief system all while adopting anachronistic clothing and calling himself the 鈥淣atural Man.鈥�

why he was fishing without a license, terTeltge told a judge: 鈥淚 was searching for something to put in my stomach as I am recognized to be allowed to do by universal law,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 am the living man and I have the right to forage for food when I am hungry.鈥�

This all could be written off as the peculiar antics of another kook with convoluted legal ideas 鈥� something not unheard of in Montana 鈥� but for the fact that terTeltge has amassed supporters locally and regionally. His fight with the courts over what began as a simple fishing citation has become the latest cause c茅l猫bre among the far right in the Mountain West, including the region鈥檚 and associated militias.

Some have gone so far as to begin organizing 鈥渃itizen grand juries,鈥� another tactic of the , which purport to allow ordinary citizens to present cases to the local sheriff and sit in judgment of local government officials. Indeed, terTeltge himself has in helping to organize these 鈥渏uries鈥� in the Bozeman area.

These activities have a long history in Montana, including the of the 1990s, some of whom were from the Bozeman area and who practiced a similar kind of 鈥渟overeign citizenship鈥� theory in promoting their illegal moneymaking schemes. Indeed, one of terTeltge鈥檚 cohorts in , a Bozeman man named Steve McNeil, was heavily involved with the Freemen and was arrested at one of their trials in Billings in 1996. Other extremists, such as neo-Nazi Karl Gharst, have used 鈥渃itizen grand juries鈥� to .

In recent years, these ideas have been spread widely in places such as Montana , in which old 鈥淧atriot鈥� movement ideas have commingled freely with mainstream conservative politics, to the point that in many parts of the state Tea Party ideologues are nearly indistinguishable from the militiamen who got their start there in the 1990s.

Ernie terTeltge appears to have gotten his start that way. He first appeared on the region鈥檚 political scene in 2010, as they protested efforts to pass health care reform outside the Gallatin County Courthouse. TerTeltge was wearing his trademark mountain man outfit.

Then, in August 2013, terTeltge was caught fishing without a license at the Three Forks Pond, a state-managed area, and refused to give the game warden his name. He was subsequently charged with resisting arrest.

TerTeltge began demonstrating in front of the courthouse in Three Forks in early November as his court proceedings began. A video shows him holding up a cardboard sign and explaining sovereign citizen ideology to passersby on the street.

Then, on Nov. 19, on the resisting-arrest charge in Three Forks before City Judge Wanda Drusch. It did not go well. He yelled at the judge: "Do not tell me to shut up! I am the living, natural man, and my voice will be heard!"

He also pointed at the American flag in the corner and told the judge: "That is the Jolly Roger, that thing you call the American flag with the golf fringe around it is the Jolly Roger, and you are acting as one of its privateers!"

When Drusch got up to confer with law enforcement officers, terTeltge and his supporters peremptorily marched out of the courtroom, got in their vehicles and departed.

That tactic did not work for his , however. Once again, terTeltge tried to buffalo Judge Drusch with a flood of pseudo-legal language even as she warned him continuously that he would be found in contempt of court if he did not desist. Finally she ordered deputies to arrest him, and they did, handcuffing terTeltge as he protested: 鈥淚 cannot give you recognition, I am constrained by the United States Constitution of 1789.鈥�

Things got even stickier in January when he went before Justice of the Peace Rick West, who s, again for contempt, after he refused to remove his hat in the courtroom. This time, he had a larger crowd of supporters, but there were also over 30 law enforcement officers present to keep the peace. TerTeltge wound up spending .

This incident threw local 鈥淧atriots鈥� into a tizzy. One of terTeltge鈥檚 allies 鈥揥illiam Wolf, a formerly homeless man who has been involved in to file for political office as Democrats 鈥� as a 鈥渟overeign citizen,鈥� setting local law enforcement even further on edge.

Then about forming a 鈥渃itizens grand jury鈥� to review claims of 鈥渉uman rights violations鈥� in terTeltge鈥檚 case. The idea proved somewhat popular in Bozeman; attracted over 50 people to discuss forming what they saw as challenge to 鈥渃orrupt government.鈥�

At , however, terTeltge was more contrite and cooperative. As a result, Judge West did not return him to jail, and he was freed until his trials begin. His fishing license trial is scheduled to begin next week.

鈥淧atriot鈥� movement leaders are watching the case closely. Chuck Baldwin, the former Constitution Party candidate now living in the Flathead Valley, recently returned from his visit to the Bundy Ranch standoff in Nevada and with tales of the militias鈥� exploits in Nevada. Then Baldwin urged his audience to pay similar attention to terTeltge鈥檚 case.

鈥淚 realize, we all recognize that everybody cannot up and leave and go a thousand miles away, depending on your schedule, your home responsibilities, et cetera. We understand that,鈥� Baldwin said. 鈥淲e still have to be watchful here in the state of Montana. We鈥檝e got a situation in Bozeman, right here in our state, that we need to take care of, and we really need to rally around. You鈥檒l be hearing more about that soon.鈥�

All of this far-right activism , who have become all too familiar with this brand of extremism in recent years in Montana. Jim Taylor, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Montana, noted that there鈥檚 nothing legal about these theories.

鈥淵ou can't just make up law. Law is what it is,鈥� Taylor said. 鈥淵ou can't just say, 鈥楢nd we're going to have a grand jury on my block.鈥� It doesn't work that way.鈥�