Native American Press / Ojibwe News (Bemidji, Minnesota), 2002-10-04

              INDEX
NEWS AROUND INDIAN COUNTRY 2
NEWS BRIEFS 3
COMMENTARY/EDITORIALS 4
CLASSIFIEDS 7
Leech Lake
Reservation Tribal
Council Resolution
for recall election
of Eli O. Hunt
page 3
Supreme Court to
consider 'full faith
and credit' for tribal
courts on October 29
page 3
Dr. Buttes holds
Interior Dept.
responsible for
Shakopee
enrollment mess
page 4
There's more than
one way to censor
the press
page 4
Commentary
Resolving Red Lake
crime problems will
require sustained
community action
page 4
FBI arrests 6 for gang related shootings at Red Lake
By Bill Lawrence
In a 21 page criminal complaint filed by the FBI on Sept.
27, three eighteen-year old Red
Lakers, Cheyene Drouillard,
Sheena Rae Roberts and Sasha Jo
Anderson were all charged with
aiding and abetting each other,
and with others, with intentionally assaulting Ramona Cook
Stately and other occupants of the
Stately residence, with a dangerous weapon, to wit, a Mini-14,
.223 caliber firearm, with intent
to do bodily harm and without
just cause or excuse. In addition,
and as part of the same criminal
complaint, but in a separate
charge the FBI charged Edward
Lee May, age 18, with aiding and
abetting and intentionally assaulting another, Wakuta Westerman,
with a dangerous weapon, to-wit:
hands, fists, and a shotgun, with
intent to do bodily harm, and
without just cause or excuse.
Two juveniles, ages 15 and 16,
were also arrested, charged in relation to the assaults, and are being detained, but due to the FBI
pohcy of confidentiality in the
case of minors the FBI declined
to release their names.        The
two juveniles were charged in
"informations" in U.S. District
court. (When a person agrees to
be charged by "information," it
means that they have waived their
right to an indictment by a grand
jury.) Each one of the juveniles
was charged with one count of assault with a dangerous weapon,
and one count of carrying a firearm in relation to a crime of violence.
In a telephone interview, Minneapolis Special Agent Paul
McCabe told Press/ON that all 6
arrests took place on Friday September 27, between the hours of
6:00-8:00 p.m. on the Red Lake
Reservation. That one juvenile
was already in custody on the
Red Lake Reservation when he
was arrested and that all 6 defendants are enrolled members of the
Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians. The arrests were the result
of a joint effort by the FBI and
the Red Lake tribal pohce. The
six defendants made then initial
appearance in federal court on
September 30 in Minneapolis.
The 3 female adults were released on unsecured $25,000
bonds each and adult male defendant May was detained pending
transfer to a halfway house. The 4
adults are scheduled to appear for
a probable cause hearing in federal court at 2:00 p.m. on Thursday October 3.
Throughout the criminal complaint, the adult male defendant
and both male juveniles admitted
to being members of either the
Back of Town Mob (BOT-MOB)
or the Red Nation Klic (RNK)
gangs on the reservation.
SHOOTINGS to page 5
State court judge's orders to return child ignored by
Donald Brun, Jr.
On September 23,2002, Jawnie
Hough went to before Judge
Terrance Holter at the Beltrami
County Courthouse in Bemidji yet
again, seeking the return of her
five-year old daughter Meghan.
She and her Leech Lake attorney,
Frank Bibeau, faced Jawnie's ex-
husband Donald James Brun, Jr.
and his Twin Cities attorney
Lawrence Nichols.
Six months earlier, on March 4,
2002, Judge Holter ordered Donald
Brun, Jr. to return Meghan to
Jawnie. Brun ignored the state
court order, and when faced with
criminal contempt charges for his
failure to return the child, his attorney filed papers urging that the
state court invalidate all of its proceedings back to and including
Jawnie's June 1999 divorce from
Donald Jr., on the grounds that the
state courts did not have jurisdiction over Donald Brun, Jr., a Red
Lake enrollee.
In a court order issued the day
after the September 23rd hearing,
Minnesota court Judge Terrance
Holter rejected Brun's arguments,
and ordered that Meghan be returned to her mother by 5:00 p.m.
on October 1,2002.
The memorandum of law accompanying Holter's order is a
forceful analysis of the jurisdictional issues involved in the case,
as well as ofthe "fundamental
rights" of all citizens. Holter writes
that, "these fundamental rights require reliable due process prior to
depriving a citizen of those rights."
Holter sharply points out that
Jawnie Hough, a Leech Lake enrollee residing under Minnesota jurisdiction, is, even under the Red
Lake tribal code, clearly not subject
to Red Lake jurisdiction. He also
notes that prior to the child's being
sent to Red Lake pursuant to the
Red Lake tribal court's ex parte
custody order, Meghan had "more
substantial contacts with Minnesota
than [she] did with the Red Lake
reservation."
Holter firmly rejected Brun's arguments that he is beyond state jurisdiction, pointing out that "respondent has ... availed himself to
this Court on numerous occasions."
He points out that Brun's motion to
invalidate the divorce three years
after it became final is too late, "far
beyond the time for appeal."
On September 24*, Holter ordered
that Brun's "motion to Vacate prior
judgments and orders of this Court
is DENIED."
As this issue of Press/ON went
to press on October 3rd, the Bruns
have apparently made no effort to
comply with the Minnesota court's
order to return Meghan to her
BRUN to page 6
Derrick Lee
Kingbird indicted
on assault
charges
Minneapolis—Twenty-one-
year-old Derrick Lee Kingbird
from the Red Lake Indian Reservation was indicted by a federal
grandjury on assault charges.
The grandjury aUeged in the
indictment that on August 21,
2002, on the Red lake Indian
Reservation, Kingbird assaulted a
juvenile male with a 12-gauge
shotgun with the intent to commit
murder.
If convicted, Kingbird faces a
maximum potential penalty of 20
years in prison and/or a $250,000
fine for assault with intent to murder, up to ten years in prison and/
or a $250,000 for assault with a
dangerous weapon, and up to
seven years in prison and/or a
$250,000 fine for carrying a firearm in relation to a crime of violence. Any sentence would be
determined by a judge based on
the federal sentencing guidelines.
The case is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau
of Investigation and Red Lake
Law Enforcement. Assistant
United States Attorney Bridgid
Dowdal is prosecuting the case.
One on one with Roger Moe
By Maxine V. Eidsvig
Where does Roger Moe stand
on Indian issues? Without the
benefit of a tape recorder and
relying only on notes, this writer
went one on one with Roger
Moe to find out.
The meeting was the
result of a phone call to Press/
ON regarding the scheduled debate between the gubernatorial
candidates at 7:00 p.m.,
Wednesday, September 25th, at
Temple Israel. Mr. Moe's cam^
paign office said that there
would be an opportunity to
speak to him the afternoon of
the debate about issues affecting
American Indians, between
1:00-4:00 p.m. It seemed like
an excellent opportunity to find
out how a politician really feels
about Indian issues. Off this
writer went to Temple Israel
only to find that that wasn't the
place for this particular session.
After a couple of telephone calls
to campaign headquarters
learned that Mr. Moe would be
available for a one on one session at 3:00 p.m. at an office on
University Avenue.
The meeting went something
like this:
Q:   What are your feelings
about a state-run casino?
A:     It is not a priority.
There are other issues that are
more important, such as budget
concerns.
Q: Wouldn't a state-run casino benefit the state?
A:    Yes, but I am not sure
how much.
Q: Do you feel reservations
casinos have benefited Indians?
To what degree?
A:    Yes, after 150 years of
living under on U.S. treaties, the
reservations for the first time are
able to take care of their own
economic needs, provide education benefits to then own
people, etc. Prior to casinos,
there were issues such as unemployment, health issues and teen
pregnancies that plagued the
reservations.
Q:    Except for unemployment, you don't think those conditions exist today? Crime is at
an all time high on reservations.
A:    I am only familiar with
the reservations in Northern
Minnesota
Q:   What are your feelings
about the Full Faith and Credit
Rule now before the Minnesota
Supreme Court Rules Committee for tribal court decisions?
A:    I can't speak to that issue
MOE to page 3
Indian editor hopes to inspire fellow
Indians to enter journalism
By John Kuglin
Associated Press
MISSOULA, Mont. — When
Denny McAuliffe looked at reservations and tribal colleges, he
saw too few with their own
newspapers. When he looked at
American newspapers, he saw
far too few with any American
Indians.
To McAuliffe, the University
of Montana's Indian journalist
in residence, there was a connection, and his solution was
reznet, an online Indian newspaper he founded from the
university's journalism school in
Missoula.
Reznet not only brings Indian
news to tribal colleges in Indian
Country, but McAuliffe hopes it
also is inspiring young Indians
to consider careers in journalism.
Many students from Indian
County "don't think of journalism as a career," because newspapers have httle presence on so
many reservations, said
McAuliffe, a former night foreign desk editor for The Washington Post. "Newspapers may
play no role in their lives."
That lack of influence is evident in the nation's newsrooms.
EDITOR to page 6
At the Movies: 'Skins'
By Jocelyn Noveck
Associated Press
Atop the site of the 1890
Wounded Knee massacre sits the
Pine Ridge Indian Reservation —
one of the poorest places in the nation, we're told in Chris Eyre's new
movie, a place ravaged by unemployment, domestic violence and
alcohol abuse.
"Skins" is a story about the
Oglala Sioux Indians who live to- -
day at Pine Ridge. Based on a
novel ofthe same name by Adrian
C. Louis, it's a bleak story, starkly
told, but not without gratifying
touches of humor and dignity that
make the going a lot easier.
The best things about "Skins" —
director Eyre's follow-up to
"Smoke Signals" — are the two
lead performances, especially that
of Graham Greene ("Dances with
Wolves," "The Green Mile") who
gives Mogie, a perpetually drunk
SKINS to page 3
Critics question
Inouye adviser's
ties to Eastern
Pequots
Associated Press
HARTFORD, Conn. — Critics of the federal recognition of
the Eastern Pequots are questioning the role of U.S. Sen.
Daniel Inouye's chief counsel,
who has ties to the tribe, in a
congressional hearing and a subsequent rejection of a proposed
moratorium on tribal recognition.
Inouye, D-Hawaii, is chairman of the Senate Indian Affairs
Committee. His chief counsel,
Patricia Zell, is married to
Michael D. Cox, chief counsel
for the Eastern Pequots and architect ofthe tribe's successful
petition for federal recognition.
Zell was at Inouye's side last
week, handing him questions to
ask, as he grilled North
Stonington's first selectman during a congressional hearing in
Washington on the Eastern
Pequots' recognition.
She also helped Inouye as he
rallied fellow Senators to overwhelming reject a proposed
INOUYE to page 6
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A weekly publication.   Copyright, Native American Press, 2002
Founded in 1988
Volume 15 Issue 18
October 4,2002
AP Photo/Jim Mone
A banner protesting the University of Minnesota plans to buy time on a powerful telescope being
built on an Arizona mountain hangs from a television tower at Hubbard Broadcasting in St. Paul,
Minn., Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2002. Hubbard Broadcasting donated $5 million last year for university
astronomers to buy time on what will Ibe the world's most powerful telescope.
U of M president to recommend contract
with Ariz, telescope
By Brad Unangst
Minnesota Daily
Interim University President
Robert Bruininks will recommend the University enter into a
contract to use the controversial
Large Binocular Telescope
(LBT) at Arizona's Mount Graham International Observatory,
he said in a letter sent to supporters and opponents Friday.
University officials say access
to the telescope, which will be
one of the world's most powerful, would make the
University's astronomy department one ofthe nation's best
and enhance research and teach
ing at the institution.
Opponents say the telescope
wiU only further desecrate Mount
Graham, which hes 70 miles
northeast of Tucson, Ariz. The
San Carlos Apache American Indian tribe considers the mountain
sacred. Others say the observatory will destroy ecosystems and
animal species on the mountain.
In the letter to members on
both sides ofthe argument,
Bruininks said that Mount Graham was too valuable an opportunity for University researchers
who are lacking facilities like the
LBT.
The LBT uses two giant mir
rors to see farther into space, allowing astronomers to leam
more about the origins of the
universe.
"In short, this project provides
research and teaching opportunities that are simply not available
in any other way," Bruininks said
in the letter.
He added that even if the University pulls out of the project,
the LBT will go forward.
Construction ofthe telescope is
slated for completion in spring
2004.
To balance the Apache's cul-
TELESC0PE to page 3
Test results and state funding-.
Why are Red Lake's test scores so low
By Jean Pagano
Statistics reported last week
by the Minnesota Department
of Children, Families, and
Learning show improvements
in test scores for Native children on the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments
(MCA). Yet, even among Native students, there is variance
between children in different
districts, in some cases wide
differences. The question must
be asked: what gives rise to
different results in different
districts? Surely, by looking at
the statistics, one can see that
there are Native children that
excel in every school. These
children are beyond the scope
of this article. It is the children
that are struggling, the children
that are being left behind, that
are at risk.
One may question the
President's motivations for the
"Leave No Child Behind" program, yet the fundamental desire to have all children, regardless of race, succeed is of
benefit to everyone. In school
districts that have been traditionally under-funded or neglected, the State compensates
for this former lack by putting
more money, per student, into
those challenged districts. Yet
what happens when additional
money does not yield greater results? There continue to be troubling reports of a lack of leadership at the district, lack of discipline throughout the district, too
much emphasis on 'cultural
studies,' and lack of emphasis
on learning basic skills.
The least funded school district in Minnesota is the Russell
school district, which gets approximately $4,320 per student.
Contrast this to Red Lake,
which gets a whopping $12,893
per student. Is there a fundamental difference between the
students in the Russell school
district and those in Red Lake
that prevent them from doing
better on the MCAs? Are these
same issues found in the general
school populations for the
grades in question?
Let us begin by examining the
data from grade 3 in the Red
Lake schools against those of
other Native children, the city of
Minneapolis, and the rest of the
SCORES to page 3
Joseph Wayne
White pleads
guilty to murder
and assault
Duluth, MN—A 36-year old
Red Lake man pled guilty on
September 30, 2002, in United
States District Court to murdering his wife and assaulting two
juveniles who had come to her
aid. Joseph Wayne White entered his plea before Judge
WHITE to page 7
Robert Lee
Cook pleads
guilty to
voluntary
manslaughter
St. Paul, MN—Twenty-nine-
year-old Robert Lee Cook from
the Red Lake Indian Reservation pled guilty on October 1,
2002, in United States District
Court to voluntary manslaughter
in connection with a car crash
that occurred on March 30,
2002. Cook entered his plea be-
C00K to page 7