Native American Press / Ojibwe News (Bemidji, Minnesota), 2001-12-07

              INDEX
News Around Indian Country
Commentary/Editorials/Voices
Smoke Signals of Upcoming Events
Classifieds
Minnesota tribes
resist making casino
audits public
pg 1
Minnesota Senate to
schedule hearing on
Native child protection
disparities
pgi
Mother of Leech Lake
teen murder convict
disputes 27-year
sentence
P9 1
King petition
returned to cure
defects
pgi
Commentary
King reduces
Red Lake Tribal
Council 2002
budget by $544,720
pg4
King petition
returned to
cure defects
1716 signatures verified as good
By Jean Pagano
An independent committee has
reviewed the recall petition of
Red Lake Tribal Treasurer Dan
King as submitted to Judy Roy,
Red Lake Tribal Secretary, on
Wednesday December 5, 2001.
The petition has been returned to
cure certain defects in the addresses ofthe petitioners.
A total of 1773 signatures were
submitted on the petition. 1,665
valid signatures, or 25% ofthe
total number of registered Red
Lake voters on the day of submission, is required.
The petition has been returned
due to a number of incomplete
addresses. Out ofthe total 1773
signatures presented, 49 were
disallowed: 38 were duplicates, 4
were underage, 7 were non-
members, and 1 person withdrew
their signature. This leaves a total
of 1716 valid signatures, 51 more
than is required. However 500 of
KING to page 3
Red Lake resident busted for
possession of 26 grams of cocaine
Voice     of     the     People
By Jean Pagano
Red Lake residents Loren
Black Cloud, Rhonda Lee
Garrigan, and Todd Miller were
stopped by Wright County Drug
Task Force officer Sergeant Todd
Hoffman on November 28, 2001
after the Wright County Drug
Task Force (WCDTF) was contacted by the Hennepin County
Narcotic Unit (HCNU). WCDTF
was informed that a two-tone
Chevy Suburban with "Red Lake
Indian Reservation" plate #4720
contained a large amount of cocaine. Officers were also informed that the vehicle would
contain one female and two male
persons. The vehicle is owned by
Sheldon Cook of Red Lake.
Upon stopping the vehicle, the
driver and both passengers were
identified, the rear passenger being Black Cloud, age 32 of Red
Lake. Black Cloud resides in Red
Lake but is not believed to be an
enrolled member. Garrigan, age
38, also of Red Lake an enrolled
member, along with Miller, no
address given, were the other occupants ofthe vehicle.
Agent Kritzeck ofthe HCNU
located a plastic bag containing a
white chunky substance wedged
between two Styrofoam cups that
had been stacked together in a
cup holder on the dash board.
Field testing ofthe white substance, which weighed approximately 26 grams, tested positive
for cocaine, a Scheduled II controlled substance. After hearing
his Miranda rights, Black Cloud
admitted that he had purchased
the cocaine in Minneapolis and
that once the vehicle had been
stopped, he had placed it between the Styrofoam cups in the
cup holder on the dash.
Neither Garrigan nor Miller
have been charged, however the
Wright County Attorney's-office
has stated that charges are still
being weighed against the two.
Black Cloud was charged with Is"
degree possession of a controlled
substance, a charge which carries
a maximum sentence of 30 years,
$1 million, or both. An omnibus
hearing for Black Cloud is set for
December 14* in-Wright County.
Mother of Leech Lake teen murder
convict disputes 27-year sentence
By Jeff Armstrong
Ernestine Morgan still has
trouble believing that her quiet,
well-behaved teenage son picked
up a shotgun and ended the life of
his father one fateful day last May.
"I couldn't believe he could do
that," says Morgan of her 14-year-
old son, Darryl Headbird, Jr. "He
really loved his dad. He did everything with his dad."
Darryl Headbird, Sr. had been
the boy's primary caretaker since
the couple's separation in 1986,
but Morgan said she remained very
close to her son and
on good terms with Ms father.
"He had no juvenile record," she
said. "He was a good student, he
never smoked or swore."
Equally difficult for Morgan is
coming to terras with the tact that
Headbird will liave to spend more
time than he has yet lived behind
the bars of an adult prison. The
Leech Lake youth pleaded guilty
to second-degree murder and two
counts of first-degree assault in
October and was sentenced to 27
years in accordance with state
guidelines.
Headbird is currently being held
at St. Cloud state prison, but Mor
gan said he may ultimately be
transferred to a maximum security
facility.
Headbird would not be eligible
for supervised release for a minimum of 18 years.
Morgan accused her son's court-
appointed attorney of misrepresenting the terms ofthe plea agreement and held out hopes of appealing the sentence.
"After he had agreed to plead
guilty, Ms lawyer said he would get
16-17 years," Morgan said. 'Then
we go to court and he's sentenced
to 27 years."
She questioned the boy's emotional maturity to make decisions
which will detennine the course of
the remainder ofhis life, maintaining that she should have involved
in the legal process. Instead, Morgan cliarged, the public defender
failed to allow for her participation.
"It's like she just pushed me
aside," said Morgan. "He's still a
baby boy."
Morgan believes that her son
was coerced into accepting the plea
and wished to spare family members further emotional duress.
"I think he was trying to spare
his grandmother the agony ofa
lengthy trial," Morgan said.
The Anishinaabe woman maintained that the boy's 17-year-old
girlfriend—who was sentenced
until at least her 21 st birthday as an
accomplice to the assaults—should
have borne more legal responsibility due to her advanced age.
Morgan vehemently denied
press reports that her son was an
aficionado ofthe occult, maintaining that statements to that effect
were made by a relative who did
not know Headbird. She said such
inopportune public statements may
also have convinced him he would
never have received a fair trial before a possibly all-white jury.
"His only involvement with the
occult was his involvement with
Sierra," she said.
According to Morgan, Headbird
may liave been mentally-impaired
at the time ofthe shooting due to a
two-week bout with insomnia. She
said her son did not even comprehend in the early days ofhis incarceration that Darryl Headbird,
Sr. was dead.
"He was writing letters to his
dad addressed to his dad in Cass
Lake," she said. "They had to tell
him his dad wasn't there."
Minnesota Senate to schedule hearing on
Native child protection disparities
By JeffArmstrong
A Minnesota Senate hearing
this week on racial disparities in
the state child protection system
neglected to address the population most affected by the imbalance—Native families.
According to the most recently
reported data from the state Department of Human Services, Native children in Minnesota were
placed outside of their homes at a
rate more than six times their percentage ofthe population in
1998. African American youth
trailed close behind, accounting
in foster care for 5.3 times their
relative numbers in the state.
The Dec. 4 hearing of the MN
Senate Judiciary Committee,
however, produced testimony almost exclusively focused on the
concerns ofthe black community.
An aide to Judiciary Committee chair John Marty, Tom
Schultz, acknowledged the omission and said the committee
would hold a separate hearing
witiiin the next two months to
specifically address the complaints of Natives, who consistently make up more than 11% of
children in Minnesota foster care.
The committee administrator said
the forums are aimed at prodding
the state human services department to complete and implement
a legislatively-mandated report
on the issue.
"Minnesota has the worst numbers nationwide," said Schultz.
"(Sen.) John (Marty) is definitely
interested in trying to help on
this, particularly in trying to
nudge the Human Services Department forward."
Although tribal officials in the
state receive millions of dollars
in aid under the U.S. Indian
Child Welfare Act to uphold the
protections ofthe federal legislation, their only contribution to
date on the issue was a meeting
with the Association of Minnesota Counties last year aimed at
increasing state funding for
counties with high Native placement bills. In 1998, placement
costs statewide amounted to
$179 million.
National studies have concluded that racial minorities are
no more likely to commit child
abuse but that more than half of
all children in foster care are
from families of welfare recipients. Dr. Samuel Myers, a professor at the University of
Minnesota's Humphrey Institute,
SENATE to page 4
MOTHER ASKS COURTTO AMEND PREVIOUS MOTION
Seeks to regain custody previously granted by dissolution order
By Jean Pagano
The matter of Jawnie Hough and
her daughter Mehgan was once
again in front of Beltrami County
Judge Terrance Holter on Monday
December 3rd. Ms. Hough is asking the court to amend its previous
denial of Hough's Motion to Vacate.
As previously reported in
PRESS/ON, Jawnie Hough was
granted custody of her 4 year old
daughter in June 1999 divorce
from an abusive relationship with
Donald Bmn, Jr., of Red Lake.
Hough lost custody of her daughter, Mahgan, when her former inlaws failed to return the girl from a
visit to their Bemidji home in
March 2000. Jawnie Hough maintained that she never received notification ofthe May 9, 2000 Red
Lake hearing nor was she informed ofthe outcome. Tribal
judge Dan Chamoski awarded custody to Geraldine and Donald
Bmn, Sr. and the father Donald
Brun, Jr. on May 22 based in part
upon conversations that Donald
Bmn, Jr. reported having with
Hough. Jawnie Hough was not
present at the hearing.
When Hough took back her
daughter in June of 2000, the
Bruns reported the incident to the
Bemidji police as a kidnapping,
even though Hough still had legal
custody under state law. A comity
hearing was held on June 16,2000,
in which Judge Holter granted the
application for comity, though
Hough later claimed she did not receive the court order.
On January 10* of this year, the
child was taken from her distraught
mother after being spotted at the
Fairview University Medical Center.
Hough was subsequently charged
with felony child abduction.
Hough's Motion to Amend is an
attempt to get Judge Holter to rescind his previous denial of
Hough's Motion to Vacate. In the
the Motion to Amend, Hough
maintains that she has been the primary caretaker for most ofthe
child's life since the father never
paid support and that she is being
denied visitation rights for her
child. She further claims that her
ex-husband and his parents did
conceal the child from the rightful
custodian, namely herself, and
then used the Red Lake Court to
grant custody to Donald Bmn, Jr,
in a default judgment. The judgment was issued in default because
Hough claims to have never received proper notice from the
tribal court.
Jawnie Hough further tried to
petition the Red Lake Court by a
Red Lake Lay Counsel to seek
visitation, but was informed that
the Court would not hear the matter. A Red Lake Civil Summons
was issued in the matter of visitation against Donald Bmn, Jr. on
June 28th, 2001 but was not served
on him until November 12th, 2001.
Hough is asking the court to vacate the previous Court Orders of
HOUGH to page 6
web page: wyvw.prese-ort.net
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A weekly publication.   Copyright, Native American Press, 2001
Founded in 1988
Volume 14 Issue 2
December 7, 2001
Four Classes at Bug O Nay Ge Shig School recently met the challenge of having 95% or better
attendance. Classes with 95% or better attendance: Sandy Nubbe's 3rd Grade class, Audrey
Jenkins' 3rd Grade class, and Diane Alajokai's Junior 1st Grade class. Pictured above is Angel
Mickelson's 4lh Grade class, with an outstanding attendance rate of 98%.
Minnesota tribes resist
making casino audits public
Indian tribes that own some of
Minnesota's biggest casinos fought
attempts Friday to require the state
to release gambling audits to the
p57ii^, amid a rare dispute between top state officials over what
shxild be done.
The Prairie Island Dakota and
Mile Lacs Chippewa told a
Ransey County judge that the audits should not be released because
they include trade secrets that
could help competitors, including
backers of a state-run casino. Tliat
claim is disputed by officials who
say the audits are too old to have
valuable trade secrets.
But the audits would provide a
more detailed account ofthe billion-dollar casino industry for the
public.
The Department of Public
Safety, which collected casino audits to help regulate gambling, has
long sided with the tribes in refusing to disclose the documents. But
the Minnesota attorney general's
office disagreed in September, saying the state Data Practices Act
classifies the audits as public. The
tribes then sued the Public Safety
Department to prevent it from releasing the audits.
On Friday, the department sent
District Judge Louise Bjorkman a
letter objecting to the attorney
general's position of representing
the department.
"A conflict of interest exists in
the department being represented
by the Minnesota office of attorney
general," wrote Laurie Beyer-
Kropuenske, an attorney for the
Public Safety Department.
Bjorkman mentioned the letter in
court but took no action.
"We represent the state," Attorney General Mike Hatch countered
in an interview Friday. "We are responsible for enforcing the laws of
the state."
Hatch said that longstanding
policy prevents someone who is
thinking of suing the state from
"selecting the most friendly defendant" — in this case, Public Safety
— and then working out a quick
deal that is contrary to state law or
AUDIT to page 6
Comptroller
sides with
Indian bison
producers in
dispute
By Christopher Thome
AssociatedPress
WASHINGTON - A hotly-disputed contract to sell frozen bison
meat to the federal government
will likely go to a tribally-run cooperative following a Comptroller
General's decision released Monday.
Leaders ofthe nation's largest
bison meat producer, which earlier
was favored to win the contract,
said they were devastated by the
decision.
"It's a dismay to us," Dennis
Sexhus, chief executive officer of
the North American Bison Cooperative in New Rockford, N.D.,
said Monday. "It's really disappointing, and it hurts our business,
which as you know is struggling."
At issue is a $3 million contract
DISPUTE to page 6
Supreme Court voids decision that favored
Minnesota tribe in gambling case
AssociatedPress
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Supreme Court erased a ruling in favor of an Indian tribe Monday, following up on its decision tliat some
tribal gaming can be taxed.
An appeals court liad said that
the Internal Revenue Service was
wrong to force the Shakopee
Mdewakanton Sioux to pay
Sl 74,000 in excise taxes for pull-
tab games run on the tribe's Minnesota reservation from 1986 to
1992.
The Supreme Court ruled last
week that federal taxes can be collected on lotteries and similar
games. That case involved the
Chickasaw Nation and Choctaw
Nation of Oklahoma, which contended that the federal Indian
Gaming Regulatory Act was unclear on whether lottery cards can
be taxed.
Lawyers for Little Six Inc.,
which Rins the Minnesota operation, said the taxes involve minor
amounts of money and "their imposition on tribal governments was
only an afterthought ofthe IRS, ar
rived at over 10 years after the
tribes had begun to conduct pull-
tab games."
The Supreme Court sent the case
back to the U.S. Court of Appeals
for the Federal Circuit, which ruled
in favor of Little Six.
States are exempt from paying
federal excise taxes on wagers, but
justices mled that the exemption
did not carry over to tribal gaming.
The cases are U.S. v. Little Six
Inc., 00-1115 and Chickasaw Nation v. U.S., 00-507.
Indian Congress top priority is
quashing proposed office
By Nicholas K. Geranios
AssociatedPress
SPOKANE, Wash - The new
president ofthe National Congress
of .American Indians said Thursday
liis top priority will be quashing a
proposed office dedicated to trust
fund management.
Tex Hall, who was elected to
lead the nation's largest organization of Indian political leaders, said
tribes have grown much more sophisticated and are capable of managing their own assets.
"There is no support in Indian
country for this proposed reorganization," said Hall, who is chairman
ofNorth Dakota's Three Affiliated
Tribe. "The long-term solution on
tmst assets management needs to
be tribally driven."
Hall said the congress, meeting
this week in Spokane, has passed a
resolution opposing the new office
because tribes were not consulted.
At issue is the mismanagement
of billions of dollars in royalties
from mining, grazing, oil drilling,
timber harvesting and other activities on 54 million acres of Indian
land held in trust by the Interior
Department since 1887.
Payments were supposed to be
made to the Indian beneficiaries,
but much ofthe money was lost,
misappropriated, stolen or never
collected.
Interior Secretary Gale Norton in
October proposed "the new agency
to have jurisdiction over the royalties. Indian leaders agree there is
need for reform, but there is disagreement over how to achieve it.
PRIORITY to page 6
Interior
secretary,
Indian leaders
discuss royalty
payments
By John K. Wiley
Associated Press
SPOKANE, Wash. - Interior
Secretary Gale Norton will meet
next month with American Indian leaders to begin discussions
on a plan to reorganize agencies
that manage millions of dollars in
royalties and rents from Indian
lands.
On Wednesday, J. Steven
Griles, an Interior deputy director, told the National Congress of
ROYALTY to page 6