Native American Press / Ojibwe News (Bemidji, Minnesota), 2005-05-20

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INDEX
NEWS AROUND INDIAN COUNTRY 2
NEWS BRIEFS 3
COMMENTARY/EDITORIALS 4
CLASSIFIEDS 7
A True Anishinabe
Leader would
humbly step down
page 5
Lack of CHECK or
BALANCES at
Leech Lake
page 4
Enough pain to deal
with, no time for
anything else
page 4
Top 10 possible
places Skip Finn's
restitution went
page 4
Finn's restitution
gets "curiouser and
curiouser"
page 4
Leech Lake Recall petitions filed-—rejected
VOICE      OF      THE      PEOPLE
By Bill Lawrence
Wednesday, May 18, a group
of political activists held a news
conference to call attention to
the fact that signatures have been
collected on petitions asking for
the recaU or removal of Chairman
George Goggleye and District
Representatives Burton "Luke"
Wilson and Donald "Mick" Finn
from their elected positions on
the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe
Tribal Council (LLTC). The
group presented the original petitions to Deputy Superintendent
Shirley Van Alstine of die Bureau
of Indian Affairs in Bemidji in
order to assure the safe keeping
of the documents; they will ask
the BIA to intercede in die matter
if the LLTC should fail to act appropriately.
Chairman Goggleye and
Secretary/Treasurer Ardiur "Archie" LaRose received copies of
the petition.
The Mnnesota Chippewa Tribe
requirement for recall provisions
is 20 per cent of eligible voters.
This amounts to 541 signatures.
The recall petitions presented to
the Tribe and to the BIA contained
more dian 600 signatures.
The petitions list 13 charges
against the diree Leech Lake officials. They allege malfeasance,
dereliction and/or neglect of duty
"...members can't
trust [their] own
government... it has a lot
to do with violations of
civil rights."
and non-compliance widi the Mnnesota Chippewa Tribe constimtion and bylaws.
Frank Bibeau, former Leech
Lake tribal attorney, said because
of the way the three named officials have acted while in office,
members "can't trust [their] own
government. He added, "Basically, it has a lot to do with violations of civil rights."
Wally Storbakken, who was
instrumental in collecting the
petition signatures, said "What
this is drawing attention to is the
inadequacies of our governing
documents, in terms of a lack of
government accountability and in
terms of protection of the members diemselves and die rights of
the members. Unlike dominant
society's governments at every
level, we don't have the same
protections, guarantees."
Although the Tribal Council had
fifteen days in which to address
the petition, they responded immediately on Thursday May 19,
by rejecting the petitions based
on the fact that they had been
given copies of die original petitions. The rejection was based on
advice from Tribal Attorney M-
chael Garbow. "Accepted practice
requires that documents submitted
must be die original document."
He added, 'This rule promotes
die prevention of fraud because it
allows die parties to examine the
contents for defects or alterations.
The appearance of the original has
information as to its authenticity
diat may be lacking in die copies."
The petitioners noted in remarks
reported in Wednesday's Bemidji
Pioneer diat diey felt it was doubt
ful the Tribal Councd would vote
to remove themselves from office.'
Storbakken said, 'What you are
going to see now is we have these
petitions for removal, and the very
people that are being asked to be
put up for either recall or direct
removal are going to make the
decisions on whether they are going to remove themselves or not.
. . . Given the exorbitant salaries
that they do receive, relative to the
economy and the incomes that are
available on the reservation and
the surrounding communities, it's
probably inconceivable that diey
will remove themselves, or even.
put diemselves up to a recall."
Tribal Council's actions demonstrate an unwillingness to abide by
the wishes of the people of Leech
Lake. A look at the past suggests
diese on-going rounds of dysfunctional governance at Leech Lake
have a long history. In 1995, the
indictments of Harold "Skip"
Finn, Albert 'Tig"Pemberton and
Dan Brown clearly showed abuse
of power and criminal conduct at
the expense of the Leech Lake
populace and led to prison terms
for two of the three.
In 19%, Press/ON reported on
Chairman Eli Hunt's attempts to
remove Secretary/Treasurer Dan
Brown and District Representative Myron Ellis from the Council based on their having been
convicted on federal conspiracy
felony charges.
In 2002 the recall of Eli Hunt
and die election of Peter White
as Chairman fomented still more
dysfunction. Linda Johnson was
PETITIONS to page 7
Skip Finn paid restitution to Leech Lake Band
By Diane White
CASS LAKE-Oflicial sources
from the Leech Lake Band of
Ojibwe as well as many Leech
Lake tribal members are questioning when and how the $400,000
court ordered Restitution balance
was paid off by Harold "Skip"
Finn. Tribal Attorney Mike Garbow questioned the ownership
of the Two Points property stating that federal court documents
confinn die property belongs to
the Band.
According to the United States
Court of Appeals, case #96-3417
for the eighth circuit— "On June 7,
1995, the grand jury returned the
indictment that began this case.
Finn, Pemberton, and Brown
were charged with one count of
conspiracy, and, in varying combinations, with nine counts of
felony theft or misapplication of
tribal funds; four counts of dieft
concerning a program receiving
federal funds; one count of bribery concerning a program receiving federal funds; five counts of
money laundering; diree counts of
mail fraud; two counts of making
a false statement; and one count of
obstruction of justice.
After a seventeen-day trial, a jury
convicted all diree defendants of
conspiracy. In addition, Finn was
convicted of four counts of dieft
or misapplication of tribal funds,
four counts of dieft concerning a
program receiving federal funds,
and diree counts of mail fraud."
This week, Press/On interviewed
Harold "Skip" Finn regarding the
court ordered $400,000 restitution
and the mystery surrounding the
Two Points property. Despite all
dial has happened since the Reservation Risk Management, Inc.
(RRM) began, Mr. Finn still had
a sense of humor over the rumors
that have floated diroughout the
conununity in waves and cycles
depending on who is in power
at die I^ech Lake Band. He was
quite open about his distaste for
Press/On's coverage of his court
batdes, his ultimate disbarment
from legal practice, losing his
state senate seat, and four years in
federal prison. He has now completed the last leg of lus ordeal,
paying the restitution.
Finn told Press/On, "I was
charged by the federal government. I was convicted by die federal govenunent and I was ordered
to do certain diings by die federal
court. I have done my four years
in prison. F ve done my diree years
of supervised release. I've paid my
fine. I've paid my restitution. I've
done everydiing that they have
ordered me to do as punishment
for the offense that I had been
convicted of. At some point,
some of this thing has to come to
a conclusion. We all have a right
to live out our lives. I wasn't given
a death sentence."
According to Finn, he has attempted to make good on thejes—
titution several times, including
when he was serving time in the
Duluth federal prison. Fimi claims
he would have paid off the restitution three years ago, had it not been
for dien uibal attorneys Micliael
Garbow and Joe Plummer who
filed a tribal court case against
Finn to regain the tide to the Two
Points property. Finn stated he
purchased that property in 1985
or 1986. According to Tribal Attorney Garbow now, the case was
dropped at die recommendation
of former tribal attorney Frank
Bibeau following Garbow and
Hummer's departure from working for the Band.
Finn proposed to have the Two
Points property (on Leech Lake's
Portage Bay) removed from the
Bureau of Indian Affairs trust status in order to place the property
in the real estate market. Over the
years, the Two Points property
grew considerably in worth to
what Leech Lake official sources
say is over $1,000,000. Those
same sources report that the Two
FINN to page 7
Suspected drug
runner arrested
Minneapolis - A 26-year old
man, suspected of being a runner
for an alleged drug dealer operating on the White Earth and Red
Lake Indian Reservations was
arrested today for conspiring to
distribute more than 50 grams of
crack cocaine.
Kurtis Allen Jackson from
Wabun, Mnnesota, was arrested
and made an initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mary
Kay Klein in Bemidji. Jackson
was released on bond and is
scheduled for a preliminary hearing on May 24,2005, at 10:00 a.m.
before Magistrate Judge Jonathan
Lebedoff in Mnneapolis.
According to a criminal complaint filed in the case, Jackson
sold cocaine from his Mahnomen
County residence. On four separate occasions in the fall of 2003,
informants allegedly purchased
cocaine from Jackson.
The charge of conspiracy to
distribe more than 50 grams of
crack cocaine crries a mandatory
minimum sentence often years in
prison.
The case resulted from ongoing investigation by the Bureau
of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms
and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the
Minnesota Bureau of Criminal
Apprehension, the Mahnomen
County Sheriff's Office, the
Becker County Sheriff's Department, the White Earth Police
Department, and the Red Lake
Police Department. Assistant
United States Attorney Tom Hol-
lenhorst is prosecuting the case.
Indian Health Care Improvement
Act Up for Renewal
By Jean Pagano
Senators John McCain (R-AZ)
and Byron Dorgan (D-ND), chairman and vice chairman of die Senate Committee on Indian Affairs,
introduced S. 1057 this week, "a
Bill to amend the Indian Health
Care Improvement Act (IHCIA)
and to revise and extend diat Act".
The IHCIA is up for reauthorization this year.
Intense efforts by Native advocates and members of Congress to
reaudiorize the Act last year were
unsuccessful, due mainly to the
Bush Administration's unwillingness to agree to proposed changes.
This year, senators McCain and
Dorgan are once again attempting
to begin dialogue on this matter.
Senator McCain made reference to die issues that arose in
last year's failed attempt to extend IHCIA: "In the legislation
introduced today, I have tried to
address concerns raised last year,
but understand that there still
may be some differences. I look
forward to continuing discussions
on these differences, but am introducing the bill to get the process
moving because we want to get
this legislation enacted."
The health status of Native
people remains some of the worst
in the United States. The IHCIA
was originally enacted almost
30 years ago to guarantee that
Natives would be provided with
comprehensive health care. It
provides Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement for services
provided by the Indian Health
IHCIA to page 7
Ho-Chunk Nation president:
Finances are good despite bad audit
Associated Press
MADISON, Wis. - The president
of die Ho-Chunk Nation says the
tribe will take in more money dian
it spends diis year, despite a recent
audit that said it was facing bankruptcy.
"I need to clear this up: The nation's finances are very good. They
always have been," Ho-Chunk Nation President George Lewis told
Wisconsin State Journal.
They were his first extensive
public comments since an internal tribal smdy from the Virchow
Krause & Co. accounting firm, first
reported by the Mdwaukee Journal
Sentinel May 8, became public.
The tribe hired the firm to do
the 20-page report, which said
die tribe should make immediate
and sweeping changes or the tribe
would face financial ruin.
Lewis acknowledges the tribe last
year depleted its cash reserves to a
dangerously low level of about $6
miUion, even as flawed budgeting
practices failed to completely account for revenue and expenditures.
But Lewis promises the tribe
HO-CHUNK to page 7
web page: www.press-on.net
We Support Equal Opportunity For All People
A weekly publication.  Copyright, Native American Press, 2005
Founded in 1988
Volume 17 Issue 48
May 20, 2005
Donations flow on both sides of casino debate
Associated Press
ST. PAUL - State lawmakers
who will be casting votes on Gov.
Tim Pawlenty's high-profile casino plan got more dian $12,000
in campaign contributions last
year from gambling interests.
A potentially make-or-break
vote on Pawlenty's push for two
casinos at or near Shakopee's
Canterbury Park racetrack was
set for Monday afternoon in
the House Taxes Committee.
DFLers on the committee got
$6,950 in donations, mosdy
from American Indian groups
worried that the casinos would
intrude on dieir own markets.
But Republicans also got
money - $5,150 in all, mosdy
from Canterbury Park officers
and their lobbyists who favor
Pawlenty's plan.
Members who benefited from
the donations said they wouldn't
influence dieir vote, and that die
financial support was a reflection
of their longstanding positions
on gambling issues.
"My position on no expansion of gambling has been clear
from the day I announced my
first candidacy," said Rep. John
Lesch, DFL-St. Paul, the re^
cipient of $1,250 in contributions
from tribal interests who oppose
the new casinos. "That position
seems to suit die tribes just fine.
The contributions have no impact
on how I vote."
Pawlenty's proposal, which has
changed shape numerous times
during the legislative session, now
calls for one casino to be owned
by Canterbury and the odier by
the White Eardi Chippewa Band,
which has broken ranks with other
tribes opposed to the venture.
The casino owners would get
revenue from gambling minus
prize payoffs, while the state
would get $ 150 million from each
casino in die first two years, and a
piece of future profits.
Pawlenty's proposed budget
counts on $200 million in casino
profits to erase a projected budget
deficit. A previous version of die
plan was voted down by a committee of the DFL-controlled Senate
earher in the session, though opposition to gambling expansion has
not been Limited to Democrats.
Over the weekend, an influential House Republican, Ways and
Means Chairman Jim Knoblach
of St. Cloud, said he opposed
authorizing two casinos. "With
some changes, I might be able to
support it," he said.
The chairman of the Taxes
Coinmittee, Shoreview Republican Phil Krinkie, is also a gambling opponent.
But other Republicans on the
Taxes Coinmittee got money from
Canterbury officials, including
Knoblach _ who has voted for a
Canterbury casino in the past _ as
well as Rep. Greg Davids, R-Pres-
toii, and Rep. Chris DeLaForest, R-
Andover. All got $750 donations.
"I had already indicated my
support (for a Canterbury casino)
through my recorded votes in the
'03 session," DeLaForest said.
Pawlenty allies
pull casino bill
that lacked
votes to pass
By Brian Bakst
Associated Press
ST. PAUL - Conceding their
bill would have been defeated,
Gov. Tim Pawlenty and his
state casino bill allies again put
off a House committee hearing Tuesday wliile refusing to
declare die issue dead for die
year.
The lack of casino revenue
deprives Pawlenty of at least
$200 million he was counting
on to balance die state budget.
It was the second straight
day the casino vote in the
House Taxes Committee was
postponed just hours before a
planned hearing. Pawlenty, who
has been seeking support for a
state-tribal casino, has seen
the bill languish in the Taxes
Committee since mid-April.
The latest plan had called for
both the state-tribal casino and
a second casino to be operated
by Canterbury Park racetrack in
Shakopee, where bodi facilities
woidd have been located.
"Up until today, I thought
we had die votes and were taking care of technicalities," said
Pawlenty chief of staff Dan
McElroy.
He said a couple of lawmakers who were preparing to vote
"yes" changed their minds.
Several lawmakers seen
as possible swing votes said
Tuesday they would have
voted against die bill as proposed, including Republicans
PAWLENTY to page 7
Mount Rushnlore superintendent
wants to show American Indian view
By Carson Walker
Associated Press
MOUNT RUSHMORE NATIONAL MEMORIAL, S.D.
- The huge granite faces of
presidents Washington, Jefferson,
Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt
evoke die ideals of die country's
leaders as America changed from
rural republic to world power.
But to many American Indians,
the imposing monument in the
Black Hills is viewed as a painful
symbol of Indian treaties broken
by the federal govenunent.
"Many of us consider this our
treaty territory," said Charmaine
White Face, an American Indian
activist who heads Defenders of
die Black Hills. "Mount Rush-
more is an insult because the
Black Hills are sacred."
Despite that sentiment, Gerard
Baker, Mount Rushmore National
Memorial park's first American
Indian superintendent, completes
his first year on die job May 31. He
said he eventually plans to use his
position to convey to die roughly 3
million annual visitors the reality
of Indian history.
"What I want to do is educate
America, including Indian people,
children mainly, as to how the Indian people lived before the coming of die white man," he said.
Before taking the job at Mount
Rushmore, Baker had been superintendent at Chickasaw National
Recreation Area in Oklahoma, die
Litde Bighorn Batdefield National
Monument in Montana and die Lewis
& Clark National Historic Trail.
Baker said he does not like
controversy but has dealt widi
VIEW to page 7
Deputy shoots, kills man southwest
of Bagley
Associated Press
BAGLEY, Mnn. - The Clearwater County attorney said a
21-year-old man was killed when
shots were fired during a search
of his home in nordiwestern Mnnesota by several law enforcement
agencies.
County Attorney Kip Fontaine
said in a news release diat Franklin
J. Brown, 21, was killed about 3:
15 p.m. Sunday when officers
from the Mahnomen and Clearwater County sheriff's departments,
the White Earth Tribal Police
Department and the State Patrol
executed a search warrant.
Fontaine said Brown had drawn
a weapon on deputies.
Fontaine said officers had a
warrant issued by Mahnomen
County to look for guns diat had
been stolen in a burglary. Brown's
residence was near Roy Lake in
Clearwater County.
An officer with the Mahnomen
Comity Sheriff's Department and
an officer widi the Clearwater
County Sheriff's Office were
placed on administrative leave
pending the completion of an
investigation by the state Bureau
of Criminal Apprehension.
The Ramsey County medical
examiner's office was scheduled to
perform an autopsy on Brown's body.
Roy Lake is 27 miles soudiwest
of Bagley.