Native American Press / Ojibwe News (Bemidji, Minnesota), 2003-01-11

              INDEX
NEWS AROUND INDIAN COUNTRY 2
NEWS BRIEFS 3
COMMENTARY/EDITORIALS 4
CLASSIFIEDS 7
Leech Lake gaming,
child pornography
and injustice
page 5
Your Money
A column dedicated
to helping you make
the most of your
money
page 6
Meaning to his
madness? Janklow
pardons Means
page 4
Looking ahead to
the 2003 session
page 4
Commentary
The culture of
corruption at
Leech Lake
page 4
Hearing on LaRose removal petition set for January 16
By Bill Lawrence
On Wednesday, January 8*, Leech
Lake tribal court chief judge Margaret Treuer scheduled the hearing of
the recall petition of Arthur ".Archie"
LaRose for January 16th at 2:00 pm
at the tribal courtroom at the Leech
Lake facilities center. Treuer also removed herself as the presidingjudge
for medical reasons and appointed attorney B. J. Jones of North Dakota to
hear the case. Jones has been the director ofthe University of North Dakota-based Northern Plains Judicial
Training Institute for the past several
years. He has also taught Indian Law
at the University of North Dakota
law school and has acted as a special
tribal court judge for numerous tribes
in the upper Midwest. He is a
staunch promoter of tribal courts.
The January 16* tribal court hearing is to determine whether the petition meets the requirements ofthe
Minnesota Chippewa Tribe constitution. Those requirements are that signatories of a removal petition be 18
years of age, a member ofthe Leech
Lake Band of Ojibwe, and a resident
ofthe Leech Lake Reservation.
During a 15-minute informational
meeting Monday, January 6"' at the
Palace Casino Paradise Room, acting
tribal chairman Richard Robinson
read the restraining order and announced that the Leech Lake RBC
would obey the restraining order issued by Treuer on January 3. The order cancelled the removal hearing
which was scheduled for Monday,
January 6"', and required both
LaRose and the petitioners to maintain the status quo.
District I representative Burton
"Luke" Wilson was present, but District II representative Lyman Losh
was absent.
LaRose said he is asking for the
same procedures the tribe used in the
removal hearing and recall of fonner
Chairman Eli Hunt in the fall. 'They
didn't give me due process," LaRose
said ofthe RBC's handling ofthe petition. LaRose later told Press/ON
that he brought suit so that he can
have his day in court to show that the
petitioners do not have enough legal signatures to recall him. "The
council never gave me the opportunity to.review the petition and that's
all I'm really asking for," he said.
About 75 people attended the
Monday informational meeting,
most standing around the edges of
the room rather than taking places
in the rows of chairs. After LaRose
made his brief statement, a member
ofthe audience asked whether the
next phase ofthe audit by RSM
McGladrey would continue.
"The Tribal Council doesn't
want to go on with the second
phase ofthe audit," LaRose said.
The first phase ofthe audit had
uncovered misuse of tribal funds
by current members ofthe tribal
council. The second phase of
RSM McGladrey's forensic audit
was slated to examine the finances
of various departments ofthe
Leech Lake tribal administration,
including payroll.
The petition for LaRose's removal was certified December 13th
by a 4-3 vote ofthe tribal validation committee. The majority found
476 valid signatures, but the minority disallowed 60 signatures for a
total of 443 valid signatures. For
the petition to go forward, 451 signatures were needed.
The petition charges LaRose
with malfeasance in handling tribal
affairs, neglect of duty, refusal to
comply with the constitution and
bylaws, violation of tribal government ethics and Leech lake budget
ordinance, and misuse ofthe Leech
Lake corporate credit card, band
funds and motor pool vehicles. It
also charges LaRose of threatening
band employees.
LaRose denies the allegations
and challenges the validity ofthe
petition. He went to tribal court and
filed suit against the tribal council,
officially known as the Reservation
Business Committee (RBC), as
well as four members ofthe reservation certification committee appointed by the RBC to examine the
petition. "It's time we started running our government according to
thelaw," LaRose said.
LaRose is represented by attorney
Randy Thompson of Nolan,
MacGregor and Thompson of St.
Paul. The tribal council is represented
by Leech Lake tribal attorneys Joe
Plumerand Frank Bibeau.
Native firefighter injured in Colorado blazes denied
workers' compensation
By Jeff Armstrong
A Miqmaq firefighter who
fractured her pelvis battling Colorado wildfires which ravaged the
state last year says she has encountered an equally formidable
adversary in the form ofthe federal bureaucracy.
Working under contract with
the Bureau of Indian Affairs,
Kathy Kingbird has been waiting
for federal workers'compensation since she filed for a 45-day
continuance of pay on July 2, one
day after breaking her nip on a
steep slope in a forest near Colorado Springs. Six months later,
she has collected nothing from   •
her disabling injury but a growing
pile of medical bills and paperwork.
Kingbird was featured in news
reports last summer as a hero for
her role in fighting fires which ul
timately claimed the lives of nine
of her comrades and nearly one
million acres of forest land. Today, she is a forgotten casualty,
reduced to dependence on a $200
monthly state General Assistance
check and the support of her
friends.
Kingbird, age 30, walks with a
pronounced limp and occasionally with the assistance of a cane.
Although her pain is intermittent,
the discomfort is constant, she
says.
Her problems began with a
misdiagnosis. Initially treated at
Penrose Hospital in Colorado
Springs, Kingbird was subjected
to numerous medical tests which
identified only contusions, or
bruises. "Bones, joints and soft
tissues are within normal limits,"
the hospital reported.
Back in Bemidji, MeritCare
clinic prescribed a regimen of
physical therapy inappropriate for
the treatment of a pelvic fracture.
Kingbird said medical professionals refused to believe the extent of
her pain.
"They tried to tell me it was all
in my head," she said.
It was not until Nov. 6 that
MeritCare physician William G
Muller located "a fracture ofthe
pelvis in 2 spots... Patient was disabled starting July 1,2002 and actually continues to be disabled
now." Muller regretted that "her
medical diagnosis was missed for
sometime."
In a bewildering series of responses to Kingbird's claims, the
U.S. Department of Labor's Office
of Workers' Compensation Programs denied, then approved, only
to again deny, her application for
INJURY to page 6
Former lobbyist
appointed as
new governor's
'tribal liaison'
Governor Pawlenty's new
tribal liaison is Terri Velner.
Velner resigned from her position as a registered lobbyist with
the law firm Winthrop and
Weinstein in order to take the
job with the governor's office.
Her clients included the Prairie
Island Dakota Community,
Manitoba Hydro, the Minnesota
Energy Consumers, and Farmland Industries, which describes
itself as "the largest farmer-
owned cooperative in North
America" and has heavy investments in agricultural chemicals
manufacture.
Velner declined to comment
on her new job as tribal liaison,
other than emphasizing that she
has resigned from Winthrop and
Weinstein. She said that although she is non-Indian she is
familiar with Indian issues, and
she explained that Pawlenty's
staff have been directed to refer
questions from the press to the
new governor's communications
director.
According to communications
director Daniel Wolter, Velner
"is one ofthe policy managers
in the government relations
area." Wolter explained that she
was hired "based on her expertise in certain areas ... she is a
policy person." In addition to
helping formulate Minnesota's
policy toward Indians for the
Pawlenty administration, Velner
will also work on natural resources and agricultural policy.
The former lobbyist has "expertise in the issue clusters:
natural resources, agriculture,
and her 'tribal work' in the
past," the communications director said. Additional details
of Velner's experience were not
available at press time, although
Wolter said that he would provide this newspaper with a copy
of Velner's resume in time for
next week's issue.
He added that Velner will "represent the governor's views and
ideas in the legislature," and that
" LIAISON to page 3
Court gives regulators more power
over Indian gambling
Associated Press
TULSA, Okla.—An appeals
court panel ruling in a Seminole Nation of Oklahoma case lias given authorities more power to regulate
gambling on American Indian Land.
The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of
Appeals in Denver ruled Tuesday
that the chainnan ofthe National Indian Gaming Commission can temporarily close all of a tribe's facilities
even when only a few ofthe games
are determined to be improper.
The 3-0 decision is believed to be
the first ever on the issue.
"This is a very important decision," said Sheldon Sperling, U.S.
attorney for the Eastern District of
Oklahoma. 'The NIGC can't be expected to police tribal gambling
without authority to enforce temporary closing orders."
The 3-0 decision reverses a Feb-
mary 2001 decision by a federal
judge in Muskogee that the commission chairman had overstepped his
authority in temporarily closing all
four ofthe tribe's casinos in Seminole
County.
"I think it's very dangerous 'that the
chairman is being given this broad
authority," said Seminole Nation attorney Gary S. Pitchlynn
Pitchlynn said he will recommend
that the tribe ask the court's full
complement of judges to reconsider
the panel's decision But the court
only rarely grants such requests.
The panel wrote that the Indian
Gaming Regulatory Act of 1998 "unambiguously authorizes the NIGC
chairman to order the temporary closure of entire gaming operations."
In May 2000, the NIGC chairman
ordered the tribe to temporarily stop
operating certain coin-operated
games resembling slot machines,
which had been determined impermissible under Indian gaming laws.
But the tribe began offering other,
similar games, and the chairman ordered the nation to cease all gaming
activities. The U.S. attorney asked
former U.S. District Judge Michael
Burrage in Muskogee to enforce the
order, but Burrage ruled the chairman
had exceeded Ms authority.
Tuesday's decision came after the
government appealed.
Meanwhile, the Washington-based
gaming commission made the
chairman's temporary closure orders
pennanent in May. The tribe has sued
to reverse that order.
Oklahoma Indian tribes can offer
Class II games, such as bingo,
pulltabs, lotto, and some card games.
The gaming commission had determined that the Seminole's games
were impermissible Class IE games,
like slot machines, roulette and
blackjack.
Pawlenty to tour "ethnic corridors"
According to the Minnesota
.American Indian Chamber of
Commerce (MIACC), newly inaugurated governor Tim Pawlenty
will be "touting ethnic corridors
in the Twin Cities focusing on
entrepreneurialism and minority
communities" during the early
days of his administration.
Pawlenty is scheduled to visit
Franklin Avenue on the morning
of Friday, January 10*. Pawlenty
will "hear about prospects and
challenges facing American Indian entrepreneurs in today's
economy," and will tour
Northland Native American Products, at 1113 Franklin Avenue in
the Phillips neighborhood of
south Minneapolis. A brief meeting at Maria's Cafe is planned after the Northland tour. Officials
of tribal government and metropolitan program directors are
among those invited to the event.
According to Karri Plowman,
"Governor Pawlenty is making a
crucial first step in the right direction. This is the first time that a
Minnesota governor has showed a
serious interest in American Indian entrepreneurship in recent
years. I think that this is important: paying attention to the
American Indian business community. Indian business owners
hire Indian people, and that helps
the local economy, helps the Indian community, and in the long
run the state is better off because
of it. Pawlenty's administration
promises to be an administration
that is not only talking about 'eco-
TOUR to page 3
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Volume 15 Issue 31
January 11,2003
Northwoods logging in the early 1900s.
photo: Genevieve Westlake
Three charged
in death of
Onamia man
Associated Press
MLACA MINN.—Three
men have been charged with murder in the death of a man on the
, Mile Lacs Indian Reservation.
iVicivin Duane Eagle Jr., 45, of
Onamia, died Sunday at a home
on the reservation as a result of multiple blunt-force injuries, according
to the coroner's report.
Coleman Lee Weous, 18, Roger
Duane Garbow Jr., 20, and a 17-
year-old boy were charged Tuesday
inMille Lacs County District Court.
Each was charged with six
counts: second-degree murder,
aiding and abetting second-degree murder, third-degree murder, aiding and abetting third-degree murder, first-degree manslaughter and aiding and abetting
first-degree manslaughter.
Lawsuit over
campaign
donations could
test tribal
sovereignty
By Erica Werner
Associated Press
LOS ANGELES—In an important test ofthe reach of tribal
sovereignty, California's political
watchdog agency is suing one of
the state's wealthiest and most influential Indian tribes, accusing it
of violating campaign finance reporting laws.
The Agua Caliente Band of
Cahuilla Indians, which operates
two casinos in and around Palm
Springs, argues those laws do not
apply to it because it is a sovereign entity. The Fair Political
LAWSUIT to page 6
Secretary Norton names Martin Acting
Assistant Secretary - Indian Affairs
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Interior Secretary Gale Norton today
announced her designation of
Aurene M. Martin, a member of
the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, as Acting Assistant
Secretary- Indian Affairs. "Aurene
Martin brings solid experience in
Indian affairs and a commitment to
excellence to her new role," said
Secretary Norton. "She will be an
able leader for the Bureau of Indian
Affairs during its transition into an
efficient and effective Indian service." Martin had served as Deputy
Assistant Secretary under Assistant
Secretary Neal McCaleb, who recently retired from public service.
"I'm deeply honored to accept Secretary Norton's designation," Martin said, "and I am confident that
our efforts to improve the BIA will
result in improved services to the
trust beneficiaries and the federally
recognized tribes." In October
2001, Martin joined the Interior
Department as Counselor to the
Assistant Secretary after having
served as Republican senior counsel to the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs since January 1999,
where she oversaw Indian health
care, gaming and self-determina-
Aurene M. Martin
tion issues and appropriations.
From October 1998 to January
1999 she served as Director of
Congressional and Public Affairs
for the National Indian Gaming
Commission (NIGC).
From June 1993 to October
1998, she worked for the Oneida
Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin and
left as Senior Staff Attorney. While
there she worked on all aspects of
tribal representation including Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA)
litigation, gaming, and self-determination and tribal government issues. Martin was bom in Shawano,
MARTIN to page 6
Norton applauds nomination of
Ross O. Swimmer as Special
Trustee for American Indians
WASHINGTON - Interior Secretary Gale A. Norton today applauded President Bush's nomination of Ross O. Swimmer, currently
director ofthe Office of Indian
Trust Transition and a fonner Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs,
to be Special Trustee for American
Indians.
"Ross Swimmer is an outstanding selection to be Special Trustee
for American Indians," Norton
said. "The first Native American
ever to be nominated to this position and a former tribal chief of the
Cherokee Nation, he has an 18-
year record of leadership and service to Indian Country and brings
with him a wealth of experience in
managing issues important to Native Americans."
"It is hard, in fact, to imagine a
NORTON to page 6
Former tribal officials plead guilty to theft
Associated Press
MINOT, N.D.—Three former
Turtle Mountain Band of
Chippewa tribal officials, including
two fonner tribal chairmen,
pleaded guilty Tuesday to stealing
money from the tribe, U.S. Attorney IJrew Wrigley said.
Raphael DeCoteau, 48, who
served as chainnan in 1997 and
1998, and Melvin "Mike" Lenoir,
41, who lost a re-election bid to the
post last November, are among
eight fonner tribal officials charged
as the result of an ongoing investigation into alleged wrongdoing on
the reservation.
"These defendants violated the
public trust and have wisely admitted their guilt," Wrigley said.
"Hopetully, a measure of public
trust has been restored by these important cases."
DeCoteau on Tuesday pleaded
guilty to permitting the misapplication of $7,300 in tribal ftinds. He
also was convicted last October of
embezzling more than $ 100,000
fromthe tribe.
Lenoir pleaded guilty to conspiracy and theft charges relating to
false travel expenses submitted to the
tribe by himself and two other people
in 2000, when they were serving as
tribal councilmen.
Lenoir, who was named acting
tribal chainnan last May when Richard Monette was removed from the
post by the council for alleged wrongdoing was defeated by Monette in his
bid for re-election last fell.
Council members said when
Monette was ousted that he had neglected his duties, but he said they removed him because he fevored a
new tribal constitution
Jeff Desjariais, 36, who also was
charged in the travel expense scheme
that authorities said netted the three
men more than S2,000 each, pleaded
guilty on Dec. 16 to conspiracy and
embezzlement, Wrigley said.
Fonner Councilman Doug
Delorme, 33, who also lost a bid for
re-election last year, pleaded guilty
Tuesday to embezzling more than
S1,000 from the tribe, along with other
charges including intimidating a witness. The U.S. attorney's office said
the incidents occurred in October
1998 and the last two months of 2001.
, Sentencing dates have not been set
for the four men, all of whom are
from Belcourt. Raymond Reed Jr.,
29, of Belcourt, was sentenced Tuesday to three years of probation with
six months of home confinement on
charges he embezzled about $12,000
from the tribal finance office when he
worked there as a manager.
Reed, who pleaded guilty last September, also was ordered by U.S.
District Judge Dan Hovland to pay
restitution to the tribe.
Sentencing for Ronald Morin, 60,
of Dunseith, who was named by
DeCoteau to lead a tribal business
and was convicted of conspiracy and
theft along with DeCoteau in October, has been set for Feb. 4 in U.S.
District Court in Minot.