Native American Press / Ojibwe News (Bemidji, Minnesota), 1999-08-27

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"' -'. -~'~':"/ _     ' '
The Body
meets The
Skins, pg. 4
Leech Lake to
vote on
Northern
Lights Casino
expansion,
pg-1
Red Lake
sundance
organizers claim
victory for
religious freedom,
P9 1
State auditor
lacks
jurisdiction to
audit Pine
Point, pg. 1
Gov. Ventura
meets with
Tribal leaders,
P9- 1
Mille Lacs Band
to exert
sovereign
immunity in
Armstrong case,
P9- 1
Mille Lacs Band to exert sovereign
immunity in Armstrong case
Puts tribal agreements with state and local governments in
question
Voice ofthe People
1
web page:   www.press-on.net
By Bill Lawrence
By a letter dated August 24,
1999, Joseph B. Marshall, an
attorney forthe Mille Lacs Band
of Ojibwe notified attorneys for
Jeff Armstrong and this newspaper
that the Band planned to file a
motion for summary j udgement as
soon as possible to have the Band
dismissed from the lawsuit on the
basis of tribal sovereign immunity.
The letter states:
"It is our position that the
U.S. District Court does not
havejurisdictionto hear your
claims againstthe Mille Lacs
Tribal Police Department,
the Mille Lacs Band of
Chippewa Indians, or Marc
Gabiger. The reason is
because the Mille Lacs
Band of Ojibwe Indians,
which is a Band of Indians
within the Chippewa Tribe
and a sovereign entity
existing within the territorial
area ofthe United States.
The relationship between the
Tribe and the United States
is governed by a treaty which
is given full recognition and
honor by the government of
the United States. When it
Mille Lacs/to Pg. 6
^
American
Press
Ojibwe
News
We Support Equal Opportunity For All People
[
Founded in 1988      Volume 11   Issue 46
August 27,1999
Gov. Ventura meets with Tribal
leaders
A weekly publication.
}
Copyright, Native American Press, 1999
By Julie Shortridge
Gov. Jesse Ventura and Lt. Gov. Mae Schunk met
with 13 Indian tribal leaders at the Governor's
residence on Summit Avenue in St. Paul on Aug. 23,
in what was cal led a "getting acquainted" meeting.
Those in attendance included: Chair ofthe Upper
Sioux Community Dallas Ross, Chair ofthe Red
Lake Band of Chippewa Bobby Whitefeather, Chair
ofthe Bois Forte
Band Doris Isham, Chair ofthe Fond du Lac Band
Robert "Sonny" Peacock, Chair of the Grand Portage
BandNorman Deschampe, Chair of the Leech Lake
Band Eli Hunt, Chair of White Earth Band John
Buckanaga, Secretary/Treasurer of the White Earth
Band Erma Vizenor, Chair of the Mille Lacs Band
Marge Anderson, President of Prairie Island
Mdewakanton Sioux Audrey Kohnen, Chair of
Shakopee-Mdewakanton Sioux Stanley Crooks,
Sr., Chair ofthe Lower Sioux Roger Prescott, and
Executive Director of the Minnesota Indian Affairs
Council Joe Day. Vizenor was the only person in
attendance who is not a member ofthe MIAC.
While posing on the residence steps for a photo
opportunity in front of a dozen or more media
people, Gov. Ventura said he would have no
comment about the meeting, but offered the
microphone to Mille Lacs ChiefExecutive Marge
Anderson, who is the vice chair of the MIAC.
Anderson said simply, "It was good. We talked
about wrestling."
This was the day after the Go vernor' s return to the
wrestling ring as a referee in the pay-per-view TV
"SummerSlam" event at the Target Center, and the
media was gathered primarily to try to get the
Governor to comment about that.
Red Lake ChiefExecutive Bobby Whitefeather
offered a somewhat more informative summary:
"We talked about education,  Indian
gaming, and the Tribe's desire to keep
operating in the manner we have been for
the past several years to the benefit of all
Gov. Ventura/to pg. 3
State auditor says her office lacks
jurisdiction to audit Pine Point
Tribal officials met with Gov. Jesse Ventura and Lt. Gov. Mae Schunk Aug. 23 at the
Governor's residence on Summit Avenue in St. Paul. All 11 tribal Chief Executives were
present, plus a couple others. See news article for a complete list of those in attendance.
Red Lake sundance organizers
claim victory for religious freedom
By Gary Blair
Does the State of Minnesota
have authority by law to audit, or
investigate the theft of state
education dollars recently reported
missing from the White Earth
reservation's Pine Point
Experimental School located near
Ponsford, Minnesota?
Lea Speeter, head of special
investigations for the State
Auditor's Office says her office
lacks jurisdiction to audit the school
because of changes made in 1990
and 1991 state law. Speeter claims
changes to Minn. Statute
"128B.10 sub 2" limits her
department's authority to conduct
an independent audit of the
school' s finances without a request
from the reservation's tribal
council. Speeter said she would
issue a letter to Press/On outl ining
her department's position, but
wouldn't say when.
"We're real busy, I can't say
when that letterwillbe sent. Maybe
in a month or two," Speeter
responded.
According to a May 21,1999,
article that appeared in this
newspaper, over $200,000 of
state funds are reported missing
Pine Point/to pg. 8
California Supreme Court overturns
Indian Gambling intiative
By Bob Egelko
Associated Press Writer
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -
Proposition5,thebig-money ballot
initiative to expand legalized
gambling at Indian casinos in
California, wasstruck down today
by the California Supreme Court.
The 6-1 ruling said the
proposition, which had been put
on hold while the court reviewed
the case, violated a state
constitutional banonNevada-style
casino gambling.
An appeal to the U.S. Supreme
Court appears impossible, because
the ruling is based on California
law, on which the state court is the
highest authority. Sponsors of
Proposition 5 have already started
circulating petitions for a March
2000 initiative that would amend
the state Constitution to authorize
increased reservation gamb ling.
The decision also limits California
tribes' ability to negotiate an
expansion of reservation gambling
with Gov. Gray Davis.
Proposition 5 was approved by
63 percent of the voters last
November after a campaign that
cost nearly $ 100 million, anational
record for a ballot measure.
California/to Pg. 8
By Jeff Armstrong
Organizers of a Red Lake
sundance shut down by tribal police
last month expressed hopeforthe
vindicationoftheirreligious rights
after tribal prosecutors failed to
bring charges against sundancer
Ron Leith at his initial August 12
tribal court appearance.
The Red Lake man was arrested
and jailed July 24 for allowing
non-Natives to participate in the
ceremony, in violation of a last-
minute executive order signed by
treasurer Dan King.
"The prosecutor who got the
paperwork from the police said it
was baseless. There was nothing
there," saidLeith."Hecouldn'tfile
any charges against me."
The court refunded Leith's $550
bail.
Leith questioned the legality and
wisdom ofthe tribal order, claiming
it violates the very spirit of the
sundance.
"How Dan King got to sign an
executive order shutting down
sundance, or doing anything for
that matter on a legislative issue, is
beyond me," Leith said. "It was all
about prayer—to pray for the
health and happ iness ofthe people
ofRed Lake and everywhere else.
That was the purpose ofthe Red
Lake sundance."
Lashing out at what he described
as the selective indignation of tribal
officials, Leith contrasted the
treatment of a visiting member of
the Catholic hierarchy who was
given a sacred pipe to that
accorded sundance participants
from as far away as China, Japan
and Australia.
"One ofthe things it says in that
executive order is that non-Natives
are not to be allowed to use sacred
items. Well, I don't think the
Cardinal is aNative person,'' Leith
said.' At the same time there were
people on the reservation who
almost got arrested for even being
in the same area as the pipe or
eagle feathers."
King said he issued the directive
on behalf of the full tribal council
out of respect for the wishes of
Oglala Lakota chief Oliver Red
Cloud, former National AIM
Sundance/to pg. 3
Leech Lake to vote on Northern
Lights Casino expansion
BIA chief takes on critics
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP)
— As he prepared to head to
Washington two years ago to take
a job with the Department ofthe
Interior, Kevin Gover had an idea
about what he was getting into.
"It's a mean town," the
Albuquerque lawyer said then.
"They 're waiting for you to make
a mistake and to go after you."
Today, Gover oversees the
federal government's Indian
policies. He has been accused by
some tribal leaders of crippling
their autonomy. Hehasbeenheld
in contempt by a federal j udge for
the Interior Department's handing
of thousands of trust fund accounts
and a Michigan tribe is funding a
$100,000 campaign to get him
fired.
"I must say I've enjoyed a long
honeymoon, but it' s been over for
awhile," said Gover, who was in
Albuquerque on Friday for an
Indian tourism conference.
Attacking the policies of the
Bureau oflndian Affairs and the
officials who form them has been
goingonforyears.Butthecriticism
of Gover and BIA' s response has
BIA/topg.8
By Devlyn Brooks
Bemidj i Pioneer,08/26/99
The Leech Lake Band of
Ojibwe will vote Tuesday whether
to expand the tribe's Northern
Lights Casino Walker.
In question is a proposed $30
millioncasino,hotel,restaurantand
convention center with day-care
facilities and a recreational vehicle
park, according to Leech Lake
Public Relations Director Judy
Hanks.
At 60,000 feet, the proposed
facility wouldbe three times larger
than the current facility and the
casino operation would about
double to 1,000 slots and 16
gamingtables.
In addition, a 100-bed hotel, a
50-unit RV park, a day-care
operation for patrons and a
convention center serving 450-
750 guests all would be added.
"The convention center is the
highlight ofthe project," Hanks
said Tuesday. "Walker has lost
some maj or events because they
don't have the facilities in town (to
host conventions)."
She said with a new convention
center, Walker could host events
such as a future go vernor's opening
fishingweekendandmore lodging
would exist for events such as the
Eelpout Festival and Moondance
Jam.
The tribe's current casino,
located at the junction of state
Highways 371 and 200 about four
miles south of Walker, contains
460 slots and nine gaming tables.
It contains an employee daycare
facility, but the service is not offered
to patrons and there is no hotel.
Admitting she is a proponent,
Hanks says the facility would
provide 200 more jobs, help to
diversify the tribe's economy and
provide a much needed service to
the Walker area.
Expansion/to pg. 8