The Ojibwe News (Bemidji, Minnesota), 1994-05-13

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Migizi Communications employee Ron
Otterson pleads guilty to felony charges
By Gary Blair
On Tuesday of this week, Ronald
George Otterson, former executive director of Center School, Inc., pleaded
guilty in Hennepin County District
Court to six counts of felony forgery.
Otterson told Judge Ann D. Montgomery that he signed the school's
former board member Carol
Brieschke's signature to checks totaling $2,861.72. The Minneapolis
Police Department's complaint
against Otterson encompassing the
six years he was employed at the school
is as follows: "In June of 1993, complainant was assigned a case regarding a possible misappropriation of
funds at the Center School in Minne
apolis. Complainant learned from the
new director, Carol Brieschke, at the
Center School, that the former director, Ronald George Otterson, defendant herein, was suspected of having
misused the school's American Express card for personal items such as
trips and entertainment that had no
legitimate business purposes.
The defendant was also suspected of
forging several checks to himself during his period of employment with
Center School. Brieschke believed that
the total amount of unauthorized
checks and charges exceeded
$17,000." The PRESS has learned
that the actual total amount of the
misused funds was closer to $21,000.
According to sources, the reason
Otterson wasn't charged with the full
amount of the misappropriation was
due in part to the timeframe involved.
Sources also say Otterson's plea was
brought about because of what a trial
would have exposed for the 55 year
old south Minneapolis resident.
With the guilty plea behind him
Otterson now faces sentencing which
is scheduled for July 25, 1994. Assistant Hennepin County Attorney Gary
McGlennen has asked that Otterson
be given 60 days in the county workhouse. McGlennen admitted later outside the court room that this may not
happen.
Sources close to the Center School's
Charges/ see page 3
Notice to all Red Lake Voters:
According to Red Lake Tribal Chairman Gerald "Butch" Brun the Red
Lake tribal general election scheduled for May 18th has been put in
abeyance (suspended) pending a special council meeting on May 13th
to review reported felony records of several certified candidates. For
further information call 218-679-3341 or the Red Lake Liaison, Patrick
Lussier in the twin cities at 612-879-1713.
Voice of the Anishinabeg (The People)
1
Protecting burial grounds becomes law
By Harold Iron Shield
Governor Arne Carlson signed
into law the protection of burial
grounds belonging to tribes.
A private citizen who catches
anyone damaging a human burial
ground, even unmarked graves,
could sue those persons in civil
court under this new bill that will
become law on August 1, 1994.
The new law would allow others to
bring a legal action seeking a temporary or permanent injunction that
would bar the disturbance of burial
grounds. Under the current law, only
a county attorney or the state attorney
general can bring a legal action to
prevent anyone from damaging or continuing to damage burial grounds.
The new law would allow private
citizens and others to sue for damages
and it would raise to two years the
time allowed to file the suit after the
alleged violation is discovered and
reported to the state archeologist or
the Indian Affairs Council.
The action must be filed in either
the district court of the county in
which the subject burial ground is
located or in which the defendant
resides.
Fifty Cents
Ojibwe
News
We Support Equal Opportunity For AM People
Founded in 198B
Volume 5   Issue 46
May 13, 1934
I
A weekly publication.
Copyright, The Ojibwe News, 1994
Jourdain's bid for recertificaion dismissed by
tribal judge
By Bill Lawrence
In a ruling dated May 10, 1994,
Special Judge Eugene L. DeLorme of
the Red Lake Nation Tribal Court
dismissed Roger A. Jourdain's lawsuit
seeking to permanently enjoin the
Red Lake Tribal Council from
decertifying him as a candidate for
the May 18th tribal election.
The suit also asked for an order of
the tribal court ordering the council to
place his name on the ballot for the
office of chairman for the May 18th
election. Named as defendants in the
suit were Gerald Brun, council
chairman; Bobby Whitefeather,
council secretary; Gus Strong, council
treasurer; and district representatives
Preston Graves, Roman Stately,
Fabian Cook, Lawrence Bedeau and
Alan English.
In Jourdain's complaint he alleged
that the council had certified him to
run for office at a properly conducted
meeting on April 18, 1994, but
decertified at an improperly called
meeting on April 19, 1994. The
council decertified Jourdain on the
grounds that he did not meet the
residency requirements of the tribal
constitution, which requires a one
year bona fide residency on the
reservation prior to the election for
which the person is a candidate.
In his complaint, Jourdain argued
that since he was forced to leave the
reservation due to riots in 1979, and
that since the State of Minnesota Tax
Court had ruled in 1989, that his
domicile still was the Red Lake
Reservation he should have been
allowed to run. In addition, Jourdain's
complaint went on to state that his
attempts to acquire housing and move
back to the reservation were
summarily rejected by council
members for political reasons.
In his decision, Judge DeLorme
stated that "After affording all parties
a full opportunity to be heard, this
court became aware that the issue of
Plaintiffs residency and eligibility to
run for the Office of Chairman of the
Red Lake Nation Tribal Council had
previously been determined by this
court.
Jourdain/ see page 2
Indian AIDS agency seized, services immobilized, woman dies
Native American Press/Ojibwe News staff observed annular solar eclipse with high tech equip., see story on page 4
Treasure Island harassment suit heads for
By Shelley Davis
The seizure and closure of the
American Indian AIDS Institute may
have indirectly resulted in the death of
a woman because of the agency's inability to serve, officials at the Department of Public Health AIDS office in
San Francisco speculate.
The AIAI Board of Directors, Inc.
closed the office and locked out the
staff, said Mitch Katz, M.D., director
of the Department of Public Health
AIDS office in San Francisco. He said
the biggest "rift" was between the
board of directors and the staff of the
AIAI. The board of directors fired the
staff on April 29, according to several
of the staff.
"The professional staff was dis
missed and the doors were locked for
one week," said Natalie Gutierrez,
volunteer coordinator for the agency.
Erna Pahe, interim executive director of AIAI, as appointed by the board
of directors, said the office was closed
for one week for reorganization. During this time a woman came into the
office that "did come to our services,"
said Pahe. "She came in and I talked
with her," Pahe said. "She went to
another Indian agency."
Pahe said the woman was an "addict" and had gone out that evening
and overdosed. She said she could not
see how it was connected with the
board of directors taking control over
the AIAI services.
"A woman who normally came to
the office and talked to the staff that
had been fired [overdosed]," said Tim
Offutt, minority initiative coordinator of the San Francisco AIDS office.
Offutt said it would be difficult to
determine whether there was a direct
connection with her overdosing and
that the person she had been seeing at
the AIAI was no longer available to
her. "She may not have killed herself
had services been available," said Katz.
James Abrams, treatment/client advocate for AIAI, said the day the board
of directors "seized" the office, the
staff were served papers and told they
were fired.
According to Pahe, charges were
made by the staff and the San Francisco AIDS office took receivershiD of
AIAI on March 17. She said she had
voiced complaints to the AIDS office
Agency/ see page 6
mediation
By Allen Short
Reprinted w/ permission
Star Tribune
A sexual harassment lawsuit
against Treasure Island Casino in
Red Wing is headed for mediation
after a federal appeals court rejected
the casino's request to have the case
heard in U.S. District Court.
Officials of the Prairie Island Sioux
Tribe, which owns the casino, have
agreed to try to settle the dispute
rather than have the tribe's claim of
sovereign immunity tested in
Goodhue County District Court,
according to an attorney for four
former casino employees.
The four women and a fifth who
once worked there allege that the Red
Wing casino was "an intimidating,
hostile and offensive working
environment" for female employees.
In their suit, filed in July, they
accuse the casino and its managers of
20 instances of sexual discrimination,
negligence, defamation, false
imprisonment and breach of contract.
They seek compensatory and punitive
damages.
Most of the allegations are verbal
harassment, but one woman said she
was lifted up and spanked by a
defendant; another said she was
continually grabbed and pawed at by
male emergency medical technicians.
And one, Christie Kreig, a former
marketer and casino receptionist, then
23, said she was sexually assaulted by
tribal chairman Freeman Johnson.
He has denied her claims that he
tried to rape her and that he threatened
to fire her if she didn't submit.
Kreig said she reported the incident
to casino managers, and later, to Red
Wing police.   No criminal charges
Suit/ see page 2
Indian health concerns voiced
Wisconsin Indian official urges help from Clinton Tribal ,eaders te»WeIIStone federaI ^fa,,ing short on meeting needs
By Pete Herrera
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP)
Three members of President Clinton's
cabinet promised Friday to help Indians protect reservation sovereignty,
improve housing and resolve disputes
with states concerning commercial
gambling.
Attorney JoAnn Jones, chairman of
the Wisconsin Winnebago who operate gambling halls in three communities, helped conclude the two-day
National American Indian Listening
Conference with proposals to the
Clinton representatives.
"I know it will be difficult for you
to remember all that has been said
here," Jones told them, "but I would
like for you to remember the word
"respect."
"We ask you to respect our ability
to govern ourselves. Respect the treaties your people signed. Respect our
religious beliefs and our natural resources," she said. "If you remember
respect, the actions you and your de-
partmeats have to take will follow."
Attorney General Janet Reno, Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt and
Housing and Urban Development
Secretary Henry Cisneros pledged a
new era of cooperation between Washington and Indians.
The conference was a follow-up to
last week's meeting in Washington,
D.C, of hundreds of tribal leaders
Clinton/ see page 5
By Brad Swenson
Managing Editor, Bemidji Pioneer
While health care reform focuses on
universal access and quality care for
all Americans, tribal leaders said Monday that the federal government now
falls woefully short in fulfilling its
responsibility in American Indian
health care.
"Red Lake (Band of Chippewa) gave
up land, mineral rights and natural
resources as a prepayment for health
care," Oran Beaulieau, Red Lake tribal
health director, told U.S. Sen. Paul
Wellstone, DFL-Minn., during a hearing at the Bemidji Holiday Inn. "We
can't support health care reform that
threatens our sovereignty or ignores
the federal trust responsibility."
More than a dozen tribal health
leaders, and some IS citizens during
an open microphone period, testified
on Indian health care before Wellstone
who held a field hearing of the U.S.
Senate Committee on Indian Affiars.
While Congress grapples with health
care reforms that continue a high level
of care to all Americans while providing access to all, the tribal officials
testified that current care under the
U.S. Indian Health Services is inadequately funded. It's hard to recruit
and retain doctors for reservation clinics and hospitals, and health care is
being rationed at a time when more
funding for prevention would help
Health/ see page 5
Kathryn "Jody" Beaulieu files for Red Lake
Tribal Council Secretary
Tribal gaming board suspends Prescott
Boozhoo, to all Red Lake Members
An open letter from Kathryn "Jody"
Beaulieu.
As a candidate for the office of Red
Lake Tribal Council Secretary, I
am submitting this letter to share my
views on some common concerns and
also to address the office of secretary.
There are many and varied concerns
we have but I strongly believe that
none are beyond solution if we work
toward the unity of the people, if the
people are once again empowered
through knowing that their voice
counts.
The tribal government must be
receptive to the people. No one should
feel in fear or intimidated to come
before the council. The council, after
all is elected to serve the people and
not their own self interests. Each
member of the council with the
magnitude of the responsibilities must
be on the job daily.
A phrase I heard many years ago "A
Nation Is Only As Strong As It's
Weakest Link" says it all. When one
of our members is suffering or in need
we all are. We must work toward
common goals for the good of all
members.
Factionalism, between districts,
between families, the reservation
based/urban distinctions have got to
end. We are all members of the same
tribe, the same Nation. We all have
family who do not live on the
reservation. What affects one affects
us all! We have to shed these
divisions; they serve no purpose.
Another concern is that gaming
seems to be the only answer to
unemployment. We need to diversify.
Use our ingenuity to create
environmentally safe and sound
businesses that will tap the talents of
Beaulieu/ see page 6
By Josephine Marcotty and
Pat Doyle, Staff writers
Minneapols Star Tribune
Leonard Prescott, chief executive
of Mystic Lake Casino, was ordered
from his office Thursday after a tribal
gaming commission suspended his
gaming authority, in part for publicly
releasing confidential financial information about the casino last week.
Prescott said four security officers
arrived at his office about 5:30 p.m.
with members of the gaining commission. "I told them I don't need to be
escorted out of this building, to be
escortedanywhere," saidPrescott, who
walked out voluntarily.
Tribal chairman Stanley Crooks,
Prescott's cousin and chief political
rival in the Shakopee Mdewakanton
Dakota commumty, stated in a letter
to Prescott that he "may not enter
upon or conduct any gaming business" or "be inside any operation of
the casino, pending a formal hearing
of the gaming commission." Violation of the order would result in his
arrest, Crooks said.
Prescott's suspension is the latest in
an escalating political struggle with
Crooks over control of the gambling
operation and over who should benefit from its millions in profits.
Bill Johnson, the casino's chief operating officer, was also suspended,
Prescott said, and two other executives, Allene Ross and Melvin
Campbell, were put on 60 days of
probation and told that their willingness to follow the orders of the gaming
commission would be a condition of
future employment.
Tribal government officials could
not be reached for comment. The
tribe's attorney, Steve Olson, said earlier, however, that the commission
couldn't publicly comment on internal matters related to licensing.
The five-member commission, led
by Crooks' daughter Cherie Crooks-
Bathel; voted to suspend Prescott's
license for allegedly acting in a manner that was detrimental to the community. A letter to Prescott from the
commission said the reasons for the
suspension were his decision to reveal
Prescott/ see page 3