Anxious to prove his case in court, Payne and a larger group returned to Ewing in July. The Army again arrested the party and escorted them back to Kansas. Again they were freed, but this time the federal government charged Payne with trespassing under the Indian Intercourse Act; he went to trial in Ft. Smith, Arkansas. Judge Isaac Parker ruled against Payne and fined him the maximum amount of $1,000. Since Payne had no money and no property, the government could not collect the fine. The ruling settled nothing on the question of the public domain lands, and Payne continued his activities.