A Native American tribe leader is now facing possible jail time after he was caught using eagle feathers for religious purposes.
The case filed against Pastor Soto is now in federal court, according to the Catholic News Agency.
The religious leader's lawyer assailed the US government for targeting people who have done nothing but observe their religion.
"This is a particularly egregious case where the federal government sent an undercover agent into a core religious ceremony, confiscated religious property, and criminally prosecuted people simply for practicing their religion," said Luke Goodrich, deputy general counsel for the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty.
Pastor Soto is a religious leader coming from Texas' Liban Apache tribe. It is recognized as a Native American tribe at the state level but not at the federal level. Since he uses eagle feathers in their rituals, conflict is bound to ensue since eagles are protected by federal law, which does not recognize the tribe's religion.
During the tribe ceremony, undercover federal agents confiscated the feathers and arrested Pastor Soto, charging him with a crime punishable by up to 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Pastor Soto denounced the federal government's actions, saying they were "violating the circle which we consider sacred. "It was violating everything we were as native people," he said.
"I think if I remember anything of that day was the children running around, and some were crying and some were trying to hide," he added.
Some Native American tribes are recognized by the federal government. These tribes can apply for a permit to use eagle feathers stored in the National Eagle Repository. These tribes can use as many of these feathers as they want for religious purposes.
However, Goodrich said it is a "byzantine application process" to require Native Americans to prove that they have sustained their communal and cultural identity over the years to merit recognition by the federal government.
