The Ojibwe News (Bemidji, Minnesota), 1990-08-01

              M
up
Jourdain seeks attorney in Tribal Court
It could be labelled as an instance
of double standards. To people who
have experienced Red Lake's Tribal
Court over the past 31 years, it
reveals the tenacity of a leader too
stubborn to relinquish power to an
unfair system which, fundamentally,
he created.
To those in support of former
chairman Roger A. Jourdain and
Adolf "Punce" Barrett, their attempts
to invalidate the May 23rd Red Lake
tribal election could be seen as a
move to rectify an unfair situation.
Either way, the motions filed on
July 20,1990, by Jourdain, a seven-
time winner of the Red Lake
chairman's post, and Barrett, former
Redby District Representative,
represent a radical departure from
the Red Lake Tjibal Code and
professed philosophy behind the
northern Minnesota "closed"
reservation.
The three motions filed request
the court to invalidate section
102.10 (attorney licensing
requirements) of the Red Lake
Tribal code, which would
allow Jourdain and
Barrett to be represented in tribal
court by professional attorneys.to
award them attorney's fees at the
expense of the Red Lake tribe, and
bin the absentee voter committee of
Marie Wilson, Thelma Red Eagle
and Patsy Blue as necessary parties
to the election suit.
The motions came as a near
complete suprise to most Red Lake
tribal members, as they represent a
complete reversal of the position
held by former chairman Jourdain.
He is felt to be almost soley
responsible for keeping professional
attorneys off the reservation for his
entire 31 year term. As for back as
the late 1960's, Jourdain was
responsible for preventing a legal
aid service from being operated on
the Red Lake Reservation.
According to the motion to
invalidate the code which bars
professional attorneys from Red
Lake courts, "It was his (Jourdain's)
firm belief that the strict attorney
licensing provision served to protect
the interests of the Red Lake
Reservation."
The motion goes on to place the
blame on the Tribal Council for not
allowing professional attorneys in
the tribal court by stating as follows:
"It was the tribal council's position
that profesional attorneys would
tend to disrupt tribal court
proceedings." The motion states that
Jourdain has now come to realize
that section 102.10 violates the
rights guaranteed in the Indian Civil
Rights Act of 1968, and he therefore
has changed his former stance on the
issue of professional attorney
representation in the Red Lake tribal
court.
The content of Red Lake tribal
code, section 102.10 is as follows:
"No person shall appear before the
Court and represent (an) individual
unless that person shall be licensed
by the Red Lake Band of Chippewa
Indians. Persons requesting to be
licensed shall make application to
the Red Lake Band of Chippewa
Indians on forms authorized by the
Band. All applicants to be licensed
shall meet the following criteria:
(a) Be at least 21 years of age; and
(b) Be a person of good moral
charachter; and
(c) Has never been convicted of a
felony and is a law abiding
citizen; and
(d) Is schooled in tribal law and
has knowledge of the laws,
customs, and court rules and
procedures of the Red Lake
Band; and
(e) Has an understanding of the
Chippewa language; and
(d) Is a member of the Red Lake
Band of Chippewa Indians; and
(e) Is a resident of the Red Lake
Indian Reservationand has been
such for a period of one year
prior to applying to the Tribal
Council for a license.
According to a series of articles
in the Minneapolis Star and
Tribune in January, 1986,
"Although the tribal council does
not allow lawyers in the . . court, it
uses them for its legal affairs. It
paid law firms in Duluth $140,000
in fees and expenses in 1984." In
Red Lake Courts, jury trials are rare,
and some criminal suspects sit in jail
for days without being told the
charges against them. Most people
accused of a crime take the advice
of police, the prosecutor or other
court workers. If they can't find a
person from the community to
represent them, they represent
themselves before a judge.
The document also asserts that the
code, by being restrictive.violates
the revised constitution of the Red
Lake Band of Chippewa Indians, by
denying them "equal access to the
court for redress of grievances. To
more efficiently afford members of
Brun moves for dismissal
In a motion filed on July 18,1990,
newly elected Red Lake Tribal
Chairman Gerald "Butch" Brun and
other tribal defendants challenged
the Red Lake tribal courts
jurisdiction (authority) to hear the
election suit and former chairman
Roger A. Jourdain's eligibility to be
a candidate on grounds of not
meeting residency requirements.
In his motion Brun states that "the
Red Lake tribal council has not
conferred upon the tribal court
authority to entertain lawsuits
concerning election contests. That
the Red Lake constitution
specificially provides a provision to
handle election contests. The
procedure is as follows:
First Step- complaint is made to
the General Election Board.
Second Step- a person dissatisfied
with the decision of the General
Election Board must present his
complaint to the tribal council.
Third Step- a person dissatisfied
with the decision of the tribal
council must present his
complaint to the members of the
tribe through referendum and
recall (constitution Article X).
The motion states that "subject
matter jurisdiction cannot be
implicitly or inherently conferred
upon a court and further subject
matter jurisdiction cannot be
conferrred upon a court if by doing
so would contradict the terms of
the   constitution   for   that
organization."
The motion also cites a 1976 case
titled King r. RLTC which sought
judicial review of the procedural
process and action of the General
Election Board concerning the May
23, 1986, Red Lake Election. That
lawsuit was dismissed because the
Red Lake court lacked subject
matter urisdiction to entertain a suit
of that nature (election contest). The
court stated that the Red Lake-
constsitution provided the exclusive
mechanism for resolution of election
contests.
In conclusion, the defendant
requested the court to dismiss and
deny the motion asserted by the
Plaintiff.
In their motion challenging the
residency of former chairman
Jourdain, defendent Brun, et. al,
state that Plaintiff's complaint fails
to state a claim upon which relief
can be granted Plaintiff Jourdain
was an ineligible candidate for the
May 23, 1990, Red Lake tribal
election. The Election ordinance
(33-C-90) adopted on February 20,
1990, does not provide a special
waiver for Plaintiff Jourdain to
exclude him from complying with
residency requirements. Red Lake
tribal constitution requires that "an
otherwise eligible candidate to run
as and officer, shall have been a
bona fide resident of the Red Lake
Reservation for a period of one year
next preceding the election date."
The motion asserts that Plaintiff
Jourdain was an illegally certified
candidate for the May 23, 1990
election and therefore no relief can
be granted.
the Band the Justice guaranteed in
the revised tribal constitution, access
to attorneys and/or lay counselors
should be available to all, without
the imposition of artificial barriers."
The code, according to the motion,
violates the Indian Civil Rights Act
of 1968, because it has not been
approved by the secretary of the
Interior as required by the tribal
constitution. In the U.S. Commission
on Civil Rights report, 1990,
regarding the criteria for admission
to practise before the court, area
Director Earl Barlow wrote to the
Red Lake agency superintendent in a
letter dated 1985, that "the criteria
(for licensing) are so restrictive that
it is a virtual certainty that no
professional attorney could qualify
for admission to practice. Imposition
of those criteria wold have the effect
of denying the right to counsel and,
accordingly, the BIA can neither
approve nor recognize those criteria."
Finally, the motion alleges that the
Tribal Council is in violation of its
tribal courts contract by the
continued enforcement of the
restrictive licensing requirements.
The contract requires that the concil
adhere to federal law, including the
Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968.
Jourdain and Barrett's motion
concludes by requesting that the
courts issue orders which would
delcare the licensing requirement
code unconstitutional and therefore
invalid, and to order a revision to
make the code less restrictive. They
also request that a temporary license
for attorneys to practice in Red Lake
Tribal Court be issued, and that
Jourdain and Barrett's legal counsel
be granted temporary admission for
their case.
"Voice   «o-f *:l-*«=r   Am i.st'l-ti.mabe
Fifty Cents
Founded in 1988
Volume 3 Issue 2
.:: ■:.:■..   , ■■ ■  '■ ■ . ' .       ./  .... /.;   "
.  :■■„■.,      ■■■   ,
August 1, 1990
' Copyright, the Ojibwe News, 1990
A Bi-Monthly Publication
Bemidji, Minnesota 56601
White Earth Reservation finally gets some signs
.  , . -
Signs signalling the boundaries of the White Earth Reservation were erected this summer along the major highways accessing this rural area of
northwestern Minnesota. Placed along the roads by the Minnesota Department of Transportation, the signs were lobbid for by members of the
White Earth Band of Chippewa Indians, who went to the State Capitol to request the installation. Out of the 837,000 acres tha the reservation encompasses, only 57,000 acres remain in Tribal Trust or tribal ownership. This sign is located 3 miles east of Bad Medicine Lake on Highway #113.
BIA Area Supervisor Aitken suspended,
Area Director Barlow faces criminal/civil charges
Antell appointed to New Brighton
Human Rights Commission
Lee Antell, formerly of
Mahnomen, has been appointed to
the New Brighton Human Rights
Commission.
The commission's charter is to
ensure the rights of all citizens,
especially minorities in the areas of
equal opportunity in education,
employment and housing.
Antell, a White Earth Chippewa,
graduated from Mahnomen High
School in 1960 and later taught at
Mahnomen from 1965-67. He
graduated from Moorhead State
University in 1964 and earned a
Masters Degree in Educational
Administration from the Unversity
of Minnesota in 1972. He currently
is employed as the Director of
Affirmative Action for the 21
campus Minnesota Community
College System in the central
administration office in St. Paul.
Antell, his wife, Susan, and their
children are residents of New
Brighton. Susan teaches in the
Anoka-Hennepin School District;
Marcie, age 18, will be a freshman
at Augsburg College; Robbie, age
16, attends the Flandreau Indian
School in South Dakota; and Jody,
By Ojibwe News Staff
Roger Aitken, Area
Superintendent of the bureau of
Indian Affairs in cas Lake, was
temporarily suspended effective July
30 because of alleged
insubordination in the handing of
that agency's affairs.
further information from the BIA
was unavailable. Early barlow, Area
director of the BIA in Minneapolis
stated: "The Policy of the BIA is to
not publicy comment on the internal
personnel issues of any nature and
respect the privacy of all parties
concerned."
According to sources familiar with
the situation, Barlow sought the
suspension of Aitken through the
central offices of the BIA in
Washington, D.C. after learning that
Aitken had co-signed documents
suggesting the reassignment of
himself as Area Director.
The documents, signed at a
Minnesota chippewa tribe Executive
Committee in Marquette, Mich, last
Spring, were not ratified by the TEC
in resolution form. According to a
letter sent by Barlow to Darrell
"Chip" Wadena, President of the
Roger Aitken
(file photo)
MCT, in relation to the suggestions,
Barlow requested a meeting to "air
differences" between the BIA and
the MCT.
Wadena refused a meeting with
Barlow in relation to the documents
and the. alleged resolution to MCT
policy. In the unratified resolution,
Aitken was to be considered
Barlow's replacement. •
Aitken was suspended for 15
working days as a result of the
document. He has been working
with the BIA in Cass Lake since
1984. Previously he was employed
by the Red Lake Tribal Council.
Currently, Ed Fairbanks of Cass
Lake, is Acting Area
Superintendent.
Aitken could not be reached for
comment.
In a related occurance, Jim
Sandsaver, Special Assistant to
Barlow, Area Director, is seeking
legal action in both civil and
criminal courts against Barlow, who
allegedly physically assaulted him at
a meeting last week.
The assault, sources indicate, was
the result of Sandsaver's refusal to
agree to Barlow's directives in the
handing of BIA affairs.
Sandsaver reportedly received
medical treatment for the assault and
is currendy on medical leave.
John Boreson, Contract Specialist
for the BIA, was recendy terminated
for alleged incompetence in
completing his assignment for the
agency.
Boreson, who is handicapped, has
filed charges against the BIA in
Minnesota State Court. The charges
stem from what Boreson believes
was improper treatment qf his
position as a handicapped person
within the BIA.
In 1987 Boreson suffered a stroke
that left him impaired and unable to
complete his duties as BIA Contract
Supervisor. He was reassigned to
work as a Minneapolis Area Office
Contract Specialist but maintains
that his duties to the BIA remained
unchanged.
The BIA has received a large
amount of criticism in recent years
because of alleged incompetenc and
bureaucratic inefficiency.
The MCT has, in recent years, also
made a concerted effort to wrest
itself from the BIA's influence and
gain a stronger "government to
government" relationship with the
U.S. Government.
Supporters of this movement
contend that the BIA has stripped
the MCT and other tribal
governments of real independence
and stalled efforts to improve life in
Indian Country.
"Brown's Valley Man" Story doesn't address questions
Lee Antell
Submitted Photo
age 11, will attend the middle school
in the St. Anthony-New Brighton
school district. Antell is the nephew
of Evelyn Eckstein of White Earth,
Myron Fairbanks of Naytahwaush,
and Elizabeth Nystrom of
Mahnomen.
An article appearing in the Friday,
July 27th issue of the Minneapolis
StarTribune, front page-"Science
hails 9,000-year-old Browns Valley
man. Written by staff writer Jim
Dawson, the article explains the
discovery, loss and later recovery of
an almost complete skeleton of a
man dated to be about 9,000 years
old.
Found in west central Minnesota
in 1933, the skeleton was misplaced
until 1987.
Earl Sargent, of the Minnesota
Indian Affairs Council, the only
American Indian mentioned in the
story, was the only one who
considered the reburial of the
remains.
The skeleton is being held jointly
by the state and the Indian Affairs
Council. Minnesota state laws
requires the reburial of Indian
i
remains.
"Those people aren't considering
the fact that htese are somebody's
remains," said Sargent. "What if you
dug up some white person's bones
and put them on display?"
Strong arguements for the return
of Indian remains have been heard in
recent years. Spiritual arguements
are not considered.
"Many Indians," said Sargent, who
was quoted only a few times in the
story, "believe we were wrong by
even holding these remains this
long."
"What good does it do living
Indians right now?" he asked.
According to the StarTribune,
scientists are pained by the thought
of reburying what they view as one
of the few keys available to unlock
the pre-history of America.
"Reburial would be such a loss
that years down the line the
American Indians themselves are
going to regret it," said D. Gentry
Steele, an anthropologist from Texas
A&M.
Sargent contends that
archeological digs in burial sites
ought to be stopped entirely. He
relates a story about a North Dakota
tribe that invited an
anthropologist/archeologist to
examine and rebury some remains
that were washing out of a riverbed.
The archeologist visited, dug, and
drove away with the remains of
Native Americans buried on the
reservation.
Sargent, who serves as an
archeological advisor and liason for
the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the
Burial/ see page 2
Sorry We 're La tell Due to computer
problems beyond our control, we had to publish a
day later. We appologize for any inconvienence this
may have caused. Look for us next time on
Wednesday, August 18.
The Staff of the Ojibwe News
t