Native American Press / Ojibwe News (Bemidji, Minnesota), 2004-08-06

              INDEX
NEWS AROUND INDIAN COUNTRY 2
NEWS BRIEFS 3
COMMENTARY/EDITORIALS 4
CLASSIFIEDS 7
Mick Finn's
messages to
the people of
Leech Lake
page 4
Leech Lake's Road
to Recovery
page 4
A prisoner expresses
his concerns
page 4
Leech Lake Band
of Ojibwe in Tribal
Court
page 4
Leech Lake abides
by rule of law
page 4
Leech Lake RBC removes Secretary/Treasurer LaRose
VOICE       OF       THE       PEOPLE
By Bill Lawrence
July 30, 2004, the Leech Lake
Band of Ojibwe Tribal Council
voted 4-1 to remove Secretary/
Treasurer Arthur "Archie"
LaRose from office. Chairman
George Goggleye and District
Representatives Burton "Luke"
Wilson, Lyman Losh and Donald
"Mick" Finn all voted in favor of
removal. LaRose was the single
'no' vote.
In December 2003, a petition
to recall Secretary/Treasurer
LaRose was certified by a
validation committee appointed
by the Reservation Business
Committee (RBC). However,
LaRose challenged the legitimacy of the petition signatures
in tribal court. Judge B.J. Jones
issued an injunction prohibiting
a recall election but, in March,
he lifted the injunction and dismissed the complaint because
LaRose and the RBC jointly
agreed to determine how to proceed with the recall petition.
Judge Jones in a subsequent
order stated that the court "expects the members of the RBC
to abide by its mandate of March
25, 2003 ... and vote whether
[or not] to accept the recall petition."
In April 2003, District Representatives Wilson, Losh and
Robinson signed an order for a
recall election to take place May
22,2003. Chairman White and
Secretary/Treasurer LaRose issued an executive order that had
the effect of prohibiting the hiring of an election board.
At a June 2003 meeting, there
is some confusion regarding
whether or not the RBC voted in
favor of a recall. It appears that
an impasse was created when
Chairman White and Secretary/
Treasurer LaRose voted against
determining whether the recall
should proceed while the three
district representatives voted in
favor of going forward with the
election.
The impasse effectively kept
Archie LaRose in office until the
removal vote of July 30,2004.
LaRose attempted to prevent
the RBC from voting on his removal at the scheduled July 30
meeting by filing for a restraining order. At a hearing July 29,
Judge Margaret Treuer denied
his request and the hearing to
remove LaRose took place as
scheduled. The July 29 hearing
was a continuance from a hearing
held July 27. The hearing was
continued in order for the Court
and others to review and determine authenticity and content of
a taped, unofficial, transcript of
the June 2, 2003 RBC meeting.
The partial list of charges
against LaRose include: harassing, intimidating and verbally
abusing tribal employees, threatening to fire police officers,
unauthorized changing of the
accounting office lock, withholding his signature from contracts,
unauthorized use of tribal credit
card, motor pool vehicles and
tribal funds.
LaRose continues to contend
that the charges against him are
politically motivated based on
his attempt early in his tenure as
Secretary/Treasurer to uncover
misuse of tribal funds through a
forensic audit.
Chairman Goggleye indicated
the RBC will set a date for the
recall election in the near future.
Note: the Court Decision is
printed'in full on page 4,5
Challenging constitutionality of removal, LaRose
appeals to TEC, BIA
By Jeff Armstrong
Ousted Leech Lake secretary
treasurer Archie LaRose says he
is actively lobbying the MCT
Tribal Executive Committee and
the BIA to refuse to recognize
what LaRose asserts was his
unconstitutional removal by the
RBC. LaRose argues that the
TEC should continue to recognize him as a member of the
tribal governing body until it examines the legality of his ouster.
"I still consider myself a TEC
member, as the duly-elected secretary treasurer of Leech Lake,"
LaRose said.
Under a controversial 1980
resolution, the TEC asserts sole
authority to interpret the MCT
Constitution. Prior to his removal, LaRose said, members of the
TEC suggested that chairman-
elect George Goggleye could be
subject to a tribal censure mo
tion if he went forward with last
Friday's proceedings. Such an
action by the TEC would oblige
the RBC to remove or hold a
recall election against the new
chairman.
LaRose said Goggleye
shrugged off such warnings from
TEC members with apparent disdain for the constitutional ramifications of reversing a popular
election.
"He knowingly and willingly
violated the constitution," said
LaRose. "It was the people that
elected me, not four dictators."
LaRose said he will continue
his efforts to represent the people
of the reservation by promoting
openness and accountability in
government. If efforts to prevent
his removal prove unsuccessful,
LaRose has not ruled out running in future elections, including one this month to serve out
the remainder of his term.
"A lot of people are asking me
to run, and I probably won't turn
them down," he said.
He contends that the 18-month
recall effort was driven by personal politics and animosity.
"If you look in the [Bemidji]
Pioneer, Eli Hunt says he's been
waiting for this to happen for
years. This is in retaliation for
the people ousting Eli. They
blamed me for it, but I just had
one vote like everyone else,"
LaRose said.
Although he spent a considerable portion of his tenure simply trying to remain in office,
LaRose said he has few regrets
over his turbulent term.
"Everbody that's come to my
office I've done something to
help them, so I feel good about
the two years I served."
Emergency TEC meeting needed
to address LaRose ouster
By Jeff Armstrong
July 30, 2004 seems destined
to go down as one of the darkest
days in the history of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe. On that
day, the Leech Lake RBC summoned its constituents behind a
massive security presence to witness the public political execution of secretary treasurer Archie
LaRose for high crimes against
the reign of secrecy and arbitrary
rule.
This constitutional coup
should not be allowed to stand.
MCT members concerned with
the future of tribal democracy
and constitutional reform should
demand an emergency Tribal
Executive Committee hearing
to review the constitutionality
of the LaRose removal. TEC
officials, particularly those who
favor grassroots constitutional
change, should carefully consider the implications of even implicitly recognizing the effective
nullification of an election by a
hostile RBC. When four votes
can overturn 2,000, no one can
have confidence in the integrity
of democratic governance.
Elected with nearly 60% of the
vote in 2002, LaRose's mortal
offense was to seek to fulfill his
mandate for political reform and
accountability. Early in his aborted term as secretary treasurer, he
commissioned a financial audit
in an effort to find possible ways
to get a grip on the reservation's
apparent fiscal crisis. His RBC
opponents then obtained a tribal
court injunction blocking the
audit. However, LaRose's leadership on the issue ultimately led
the full RBC to agree to a pre
liminary audit which found numerous irregularities and faulty
reporting practices.
Rather than attempt to politically resist a popular effort to
complete a more detailed audit
and enact recommended oversight measures, the Leech Lake
RBC set out to remove LaRose
from office less than six months
into his four-year term. By doing
so in the form of a petition, the
RBC initially followed the constitutional procedures by which
convicted secretary treasurer
Dan Brown and former chairman Eli Hunt were voted out of
office in recall elections. It also
appointed a petition validation
committee to evaluate the genuineness of the signatures and
issue a recommendation to the
RBC.
Although the committee approved the petition by a single
vote, the minority members
issued an opinion finding that
more than two dozen identified
signatures should have been
stricken from the petition on the
basis of fraud or non-residency,
bringing the recall effort below
the constitutionally-required
20% of reservation residents. Instead of seriously examining the
competing claims of the verification committee, the RBC opted
to rubber-stamp the higher number accepted by the majority.
LaRose, however, obtained a
temporary tribal court injunction
against a recall vote and an ensuing evidentiary hearing, which
presented convincing documentation of the invalidity of numer-
LAROSE to page 5
Justice bill puts
focus on tribal
casino crime
Despite the controversy over
conditions at Indian Country
jails, an appropriations bill approved by the House last month
provides scant funds for the
troubled facilities.
Instead, more money directed
to investigating tribal casinos.
Although federal officials say
they only have 31 open cases
of casino crime, the bill would
provide $5.5 million and 53 positions for the FBI's Indian Country unit.
The shift in priorities is found
in the Commerce, Justice and
State (CJS) bill. Approved by a
397-18 vote on July 8, it provides
$2 million for tribal jails, a slight
increase over the $1.96 million
approved the year before.
The focus on casino crime is
largely the work of Rep. Frank
Wolf (R-Virginia), the chairman
of the subcommittee that handles
the CJS bill. An outspoken opponent of all forms of gambling,
he has targeted crime at casinos
for the past couple of years - to
the objection of organizations
like the National Indian Gaming
Association and the National
Congress of American Indians.
Lobbying efforts by those
two organizations have stripped
earlier versions of the bill of
provisions deemed anti-Indian.
In 2003, tribes stopped Wolf's
proposed study on Indian gaming
and, in 2002, they killed another
study on Native Americans in
general. Other provisions were
removed when the Senate took
BILL to page 5
Former tribal officials indicted
By Deena Winter
Bismarck Tribune
A federal grand jury has indicted three former Standing
Rock officials - including the
former Standing Rock superintendent - on charges that they
defrauded their tribal district of
$169,000 and lied to the Federal
Bureau of Investigation about it.
Rinissa Fitzpatrick, Terrance
Yellow Fat and Marcia Brave
Thunder have pleaded innocent
to three federal charges they are
accused of committing while
serving on the Long Soldier
District Business-Planning
Commission.
The three-count indictment
accuses them of stealing funds
from the Long Soldier District
of the Standing Rock Sioux
tribe, conspiring to commit an
offense against the U.S. government and lying to the FBI
beginning in July 2002 through
March 2003.
The indictment alleges that:
* On Aug. 1,2002, Fitzpatrick and Brave Thunder accepted a $57,000 consultant
agreement approved by Yellow
Fat to perform a financial institute study.
* On Nov. 26, 2002 Fitzpatrick accepted a $37,000 consultant agreement approved by
Yellow Fat to perform a tourism
study.
* On Nov. 26, 2002, Yellow Fat, Fitzpatrick and Brave
Thunder accepted a $75,000
consultant agreement approved
by Yellow Fat to perform an
"impact-feasibility-potential
funding-potential partnership"
study.
* From September 2002
through March 2003, Yellow Fat
and Fitzpatrick issued, received,
cashed and deposited checks on
the bank account of the Long
Soldier District of the tribe to
Yellow Fat, Fitzpatrick and
Brave Thunder, as a result of the
INDICTMENT to page 3
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A weekly publication.  Copyright, Native American Press, 2004
Founded in 1988
Volume 17 Issue 8
August 6, 2004
The Ponca delegation visiting Washington 1877 to complain to federal officials that undue attention
was being paid to their Sioux enemies.
Lending rates for Native home buyers fall:
Rates to other racial groups increase
By Jean Pagano
Native Americans face
challenges when it comes
to buying a home. In some
cases, buying a home is
complicated because the
land is held in trusteeship by
the Federal government. In
instances where Natives can
buy homes outright, more
and more Natives are finding that home loans have
become much more elusive.
The amount of loans offered to Native American
homebuyers has grown
over the last 10 years. In
1993,11,936 loans were
extended to Natives. By
the year 1999, 26,123 loans
were offered, more than
doubling the number from
only 5 years previous. However, beginning in 2000, the
number of loans made to
Natives began to drop. The
number of loans in 2001 fell
to 24,914; 2002 saw only
15,279 loans approved; and
2003 saw a slight increase
to 18,752. The number of mortgages fell to 17,850 last year, a
decrease of 5%. Compared to 5
years ago, the numbers are off by
a staggering 36%.
Other racial groups did not
experience the same decrease
in their approval rate. Loans to
Asians increased from 91,369
in 1993 to 240,407 in 2003,
more than doubling the number
of loans in 10 years. African-
American lending rates more
than doubled from 162,379
to 334,658 over the same 10-
year period. Hispanics saw an
almost 250% increase from a
total of 157,434 loans in 1993
to 528,529 last year. Mortgages
among whites also saw about a
50% increase from 2,577,772 to
3,717,880.
The number of government-
backed purchase loans fell for
Native Americans over the same
10-year period. 3,298 were
granted in 1993 as opposed to
3,006 in 2003 resulting in a 9%
decrease. Government-backed
loans also fell among white
and Asian borrowers. Government-backed loan rates slightly
increased for African-American -
peoples and Hispanics saw a
40% increase in loan rates over
the same period.
Approval rates for Natives in
2003 were 63.7%. Only African-
Americans fared worse with a
63.6% rate. Asians, Hispanics,
and whites experienced higher
approval rates of 78%, 70.2%,
and 79.8% respectively. The rate
infonnation was contained in a
report issued by the Federal Financial Institutions Examination
Council.
Income also is a factor in the
loan approval process. For Natives making less than $50,000,
lenders said "No" a startling 36.2
percent of the time, the highest
decline percentage across all
racial groups. Among those making $50,000 to $79,000, lenders
did not approve Native loans
23.6% of the time, once again
higher than all racial groups.
Last week it was announced
RATES to page 5
Tribal leader
issues gag order
By Lauren Donovan
Bismarck Tribune
Three Affiliated Tribes
chairman Tex Hall has issued a gag order on tribal
employees, prohibiting them
from talking to the press under threat of being fired.
Hall sent a memo July
14 to all tribal employees,
saying the order is intended
to prevent any false and
inaccurate information, or
information that will reflect
negatively on the tribes' reputation, from being released
to the press.
Hall said press and media
inquiries must be directed to
his office, and tribal employees who have information
for the public also must go
through his office for approval.
"Violations of this policy
shall result in disciplinary
action up to and including
termination," Hall wrote.
The tribal public relations
department did not return
phone calls seeking comment on the memo.
One tribal employee, Ted
Siers, was laid off from his
tribal position two months
ago after releasing a lengthy
ORDER to page 3
Washington Print Press Corps
has dismal record on diversity,
says UNITY study
Study Project Advisory Committee offers recommendations
to address problem
UNI T Y
I N C,
TON, Aug. 4
/PRNewswire)
- Only one in 10
writers, editors
and bureau chiefs
in the Washington daily newspaper press corps
are journalists
of color, according to a study
on diversity by
UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc.
and the University
of Maryland's Philip Merrill College of Journalism.
Even though the United States
is quickly becoming more diverse — almost one third of the
population is non-white — the
corps of print journalists who
regularly cover the federal government and lead the national
dialogue on the issues facing this
country does not come close to
reflecting its citizenry.
"It's sadly ironic that the same
Washington press corps that has
questioned President Bush's
commitment to minority issues and criticized the dearth
of minorities on John Kerry's
JOURNALISTS Of COLOR
campaign staff is
itself startlingly
monochromatic,"
the report says.
"Go to any news
conference at the
White House,
Pentagon or Capitol Hill and the
lack of journalists
of color is readily
visible. Behind
the scenes, where
decisions are
made about what
is
news and how to cover it, the
exclusion of people of color in
Washington bureau management
is even more acute."
The release of the study precedes the kick-off of UNITY
2004, the world's largest gathering of journalists of color, held
August 4-8 in the nation's capi-
tol. The convention is the signature event of UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc. — an alliance
representing the combined 7,000
members of the Asian American
Journalists Association (AAJA),
National Association of Black
STUDY to page 5