The Native American Press (Bemidji, Minnesota), 1993-09-03

              "Skip" Finn's insurance scheme proves costly
to Leech Lake Band
By Bill Lawrence
The Native American Press/
Ojibwe News recently received a
copy of a liability insurance policy
dated October 15, 1985, issued by
Reservation Risk Management,
Inc. (RRMI) to the Leech Lake
Reservation Business Committee.
The policy carries the number
10085LL-01 and the initials
H.R.F/KB.
The policy states the type of
coverage is for ' 'Package Policy -
Includes Liability" and is for the
period October 1, 1985 to
September 30, 1995.
Coverage listed is in the amount:
(A) $7,961,880 for buildings and
contents; and (B) $695,647 for
personal property and $50,000 per
person/$500,000 aggregate
(annually) for (C) owners',
landlords', tenants' liability. The
policy carries a $ 10,000 deductible
for all perils and coverage for
building and contents and $5,000
deductible for all perils for
personal property.
The policy also provides
$50,000 per person for each
occurrence and $300,000 for
aggregate for Comprehensive
General Liability (E) and $500
each person and $5,000 for each
accident for Premises Medical
Payment (F) Premium payments
for the bare policy and property
coverage for the buildings and
contents (A) and for personal
property (B) are as follows: (1)
10-1-1985 to 9-30-86 is $300,000;
(2) 10-1-86 to 9-30-90 is $400,000
(annually); and for 10-1-1990 to
9-30-1995 is $450,000 (annually).
In addition the policy contains
a cost for general liability coverage which was based on 42% of
each annual premium. This cost
was established based upon an
estimated worker's compensation
payroll for 1985-1986 of
$3,500,000. The additional premiums for the general liability
coverage is $126,000 for 1985-
1986, $186,000 for the years
1986-1990, and $189,000 for the
years 1990-1995. Therefore, the
total premiums for the year 1985-
1986 was $426,000. For the years
1986 to 1990 the annual premi-
Finn/ See Page 3
Mystic Lake adds to their casino expansion/ Page 1
GEIS environmental statement examined/ Page 4
Myron Ellis is met in his office by and questioned/ Page 4
Skip Finn's insurance setup for Leech lake is examined/ Page 1
Jimmy "Ironlegs" Walker nears the big bridge/ Page 1
"Sellout" Cy presents Leech lake Constitution/ Page 1
r
By and For the Illative American Community
1
Fifty Cents
THE ENROLLED MEMBERS OF THE LEECH LAKE RESERVATION
-Meet in constitutional convention
-Adopt/Amend constitution in referendum(s)
-Elect Tribal Council (Legislature)
-Elect Tribal Executive Branch (Manager, Secretary/Treasurer)
-Can remove elected officers upon petition/recall vote
TRD3AL COUNCIL
(Legislature Branch)
Meets periodically to:
-Make laws, ordinances, and policies.
-Enacts annual budgets upon recommendations of Executive.
-Sets salaries, benefits, expenses
-Appoints regular court and Elders
Appeals Court judges.
-Removes judges for cause only.
-Meets inpublic.
-Adopts enrollment regulation.
-Adopts election rules.
Can be removed upon petition and recall
election.
Can be removed upon petition and recall
election.
TRIBAL EXECUTIVE
BRANCH
Fulltime, not members ofTribal Council, to:
-Carry out the laws, programs, decisions of
Tribal Council.
-Supervise day-to-day work ofTribal programs, assets, finances.
-Makes quarterly financial reports to Tribal
Council, Districts, and Membership.
-Presents annual audit and budget proposals
to Tribal Council and Membership.
Can be removed upon petition and recall
election.
Appointed by Tribal
Council
>
JUDICIAL
BRANCH
Regular court and Elder's Appeals Court
In session as case loads require to:
-Hear and act on all matters arising under
the constitution and brought by members.
-Elders' Appeals Court hears/acts on all
lower court decisions appealed by either
party to a suit.
-Courts can take cases on constitutionality
ofTribal Council actions.
-Courts can take cases on actions or failure
to act by Executive.
Can be removed (for cause only) by Tribal
Council.
Proposed Leech Lake Reservation Band Constitution Blueprint
The
Native
American
AM
^^^
Founded In 1991    Volume 3   Issue 17      September 3, 1993
1
1993
Leech Lake Reservation Constitution - a smoke
screen or a reality?
By Diane E. White
This chart was presented at the
Minneapolis Leech Lake Reservation constitution meeting and it
represents the current standing
and progress on the Leech Lake
Reservation constitution efforts as
presented by Simon Howard at the
Minneapolis American Indian
Center on Wednesday, August 18,
1993.
Most ofthe chart is self-explanatory; however, some of the areas
are pretty gray. The Tribal Council (Legislative Branch) box is not
the same empowered group known
today as the Reservation Tribal
Council (RTC). This Tribal Council meets periodically and is an
elected body from small, local area
districts, (such as: Onigum area,
Bena area, Squaw Point area, Mission area, etc.).
The Executive Branch includes
the District Representatives, as
well as the Manager and Secretary/Treasurer; and the Executive
Branch is a full-time position.
The Judicial 2ranch aie the only
appointed members of this governing body. The members are
appointed by the Tribal Council
(the small, local area councils).
Certain rules apply, such as an
age limit, and/or a law degree,
and/or blood quantum for these
appointed positions.
In the Legislative and Executive branches the representatives
can be removed upon petition and
recall election. The Judicial
branch can be removed for cause
only by the Tribal Council.
During the meeting the audience grilled Mr. Howard about
accountability for the new constitution and called the meeting a
waste of time if the constitution
was already set up; as the chart
and Mr. Howard had indicated. Si
Howard did not answer questions,
but referred to this chart to answer everything that did come up
and he very often repeated, "Refer to the chart and to the
questionnaire." Mr. Howard requested the audience to make
suggestions and comments; but
repeatedly referred to the chart as
being in place as the new constitution blueprint.
The audience requested that
women be added in equal numbers
in representatives to each elected
position. The audience wanted to
know whether there would be a
new election of all officials upon
starting this new constitution? Mr.
Howard wondered about that too.
Howard/See Page 3
Photo byMelRasmussen
"Tig" Pemberton peruses letter from band members requesting Tribal documents for review
"Tig" Pemberton caught in a controversy of
allegations
State probing bias at Indian health board
AP Minneapolis
It's a world where the boss has no
boss, questions are impermissible and
only complete compliance is acceptable.
That's the grim picture more than a
dozen current and former staff members
paint of the work atmosphere at the
Indian Health Board (IHB) of
Minneapolis, and they place the blame
squarely on one person - IHB Executive
Director Norine Smith.
The Minnesota Department Human
Rights Department is investigating
sweeping sex and race-discrimination charges filed on behalf of many
of those current and former staffers
against the MB and Smith. Human
Rights Department Commissioner
David Beaulieu said the allegations
were so serious that the department
has filed a formal charge of discrimination in the case.
Smith's IHB is described by former
staffers as a place where tension is
thick and tolerance thin. According
to the charge, popular programs were
cut by Smith in an effort to eliminate
employees she didn't like. Thosewho
dared question Smith, or who were
thought to be aligned with those who
did, were laid off or summarily fired.
And even though Smith is an American Indian, current and former
staffers say she often verbally abused
Indian staff, some of whom were labeled by Smith as "half-breeds."
Smith also characterized individual
staff members as "alcoholics," "children of alcoholics," and "from
dysfunctional families'' because they
are Indian, according to the charge.
But the full scope of Smith's reign
at IHB is just now coming into focus
as more and more Indians in the Twin
cities come forward to complain that
they, too, have been squeezed by
Smith's iron grip.
A petition of support signed by 64
IHB staff members -including Smith's
daughter Shi 11 o - was faxed to the Star
Tribune, but Smith would not discuss
the charges made against her and
IHB, referring all questions to IHB's
attorneys, Brenner and Glassman of
Minneapolis.
Brenner and Glassman issued a news
release Thursday asking the governor's office to investigate how the
Human Rights Department is conducting its inquiry into the
discrimination charges. A spokesman
for the governor said Friday that officials are looking into Brenner and
Glassman's request.
Brenner and Glassman said the
Human Rights Department violated
itsown rules by announcing the charges publicly before notifying IHB. And
Brenner and Glassman also note that
it asked the Human Rights Department to clarify the charges, "as
provided by the rules."
"It lists various claims of discrimination," IHB attorney Bill Turkula
said ofthe charges." But we have no
way to respond because we couldn't
tell who it was or when it was or what
was said."
Beaulieu said that the department
mailed a copy of the complaint to
IHB's board of directors the same
time the charges were filed and that
the department has no rules governing the clarity ofthe charges it files.
'' We don't name specific individuals
forapurpose." Beaulieu said, "There
is enough there to respond to."
The magnitude ofthe alleged misery at IHB is hard for Jo-Anne Stately
to comprehend. Stately, who was co-
director at IHB with Smith from 1975
to 1988 before leaving for a job at the
Minnesota Indian Affairs Council,
remembers Smith as a committed,
hard worker. But the uniformity ofthe
complaints has convinced Stately and
the Human Rights Department that
they must be examined.
"These are not just disgruntled
employees complaining about what's
going on," said Stately, who added
that desperate IHB staffers began calling her about Smith as soon as she
left. ' 'The number of staff that have
left either willingly or in cases of
closing down [programs], I think
that's just too much to ignore."
Beaulieu agrees. He said the charges have been classified as a
"commissioner's charge," a rare
designation that enables the ensuing
investigation to get top priority. Of
the more than 2,000 charges filed
with the Human Rights Department
every year, only 15 to 20 are commissioner's charges, but Beaulieu said it
could take months before the investigation of the charges against Smith
and IHB is complete.
Meanwhile, current and former IHB
staffers are breaking their silence.
Carol White, who worked at IHB
for three years before being laid off in
February, said Smith called some IHB
staffers "half-breeds'' one weekend a
couple of years ago when Smith and
some IHB staffers were working. "She
often made remarks about people,
Smith/See Page 3
By Diane E. White
On Monday, August 16, 1993, a
letter was presented to Mr. Alfred
"Tig" Pemberton, Chairman of
the Leech Lake Reservation Tribal Council in Cass Lake,
Minnesota, regarding enrolled
member's rights and desires to
gain copies of tribal and gaming
data to satisfy the outstanding allegations of fraud and misuse of
funds.
The letter is as follows: "Pursuant to Article VI. Section 1 (a) -
(f): Authorities of Reservation
Business Committee/Tribal Coun-.
cil (LLRTC). and Article IX.
Section 1: Bonding of Tribal Offi
cials, of the Revised Constitution
and By-laws of The Minnesota
Chippewa Tribe, we, the enrolled
members ofthe Leech Lake Band
ofthe Minnesota Chippewa Tribe,
do hereby request to review and
make appropriate copies of the
following business and financial
documents ofthe Leech Lake Band
of Chippewa Indians in the custody ofthe Leech Lake Reservation
Tribal Council (LLRTC): (1) A
true and correct copy of the contract between the Leech Lake Band
of Chippewa Indians, LLRTC, and
Harold "Skip" Finn (d/b/a) Reservation Risk Management, Inc.
(RMI). Include all financial documents and records, including
cancelled checks showing all premiums paid to RMI by the LLRTC,
any and all claims paid by RMI as
a result of said contract on behalf
of the Leech Lake Band of Chippewa Indians from the time of
initial contract date to the present
date; (2) Copies of audited financial statements for Northern
Lights Casino and The Palace Bingo and Casino for all years from
inception to date; (3) Copies of all
contracts for management services, consulting services, legal
services, lobbying services, and
leases and/or purchase agreements
for gaming machines and equip-
"Tig"/SeePage3
Indian elder hikes to Washington
By Dave Schneider
The Mining Journal
THREE LAKES - Jim "Ironlegs"
Weaver appeared almost as fresh as
the Mcintosh apple he crunched on as
he strolled effortlessly along U.S. 41
in Baraga County.
With the pace he was keeping you'd
think Weaver was taking a short hike
from a nearby cabin or campground.
But the spry 73 year old is walking
from Minnesota to Washington, D.C.
"Nothing to it, it's like a walk in the
woods," Weaver said about being out
in 85 degree heat. "I'm going to make
27 or 28 miles today."
Weaver isn't making the long trek
for himself. He hopes to meet the
"Great White Chief - President Bill
Clinton - to tell him about problems
on the environment and on Indian
reservations.
"I have several purposes for my
walk," he said. No. 1 is the clear-
cutting of forests in the Northwest
and in Minnesota...We haven't got
anything left up here."
Weaver/See Page 6
Shakopee Mdewakanton open new Dakota
Country Casino
By Gary Blair
This week the Shakopee
Mdewakanton Sioux Reservation and
their economic development arm,
Little Six Inc., opened their second
casino. Tribal Officials and corporate
management cut the ribbon to the
newly constructed Dakota Country
Casino at 9 P.M. on August 31,1993.
Fifteen hundred people were invited
to the grand opening of the new 18
million dollar expansion that adjoins
theMystic Lake Casino/Entertainment
Complex that just opened within the
past year.
According to information provided
to the media, there will be 1,500 new
jobs added to the operation by December. This will bring the total number
employed at Mystic Lake to 4,000
people, twenty-five percent of whom
are Indian. The new Dakota Country
Casino alone will have a yearly payroll of $17 million,with the overall
include full-service banquet facilities
with a 400 seat capacity, forty two
thousand square feet of gaming space
for 1,000 slot machines and 52 black-
complex to have an annual payroll of jack tables
$70 million. Federal and state payroll
taxes will total $ 12 million each year.
The new casino is 240,000 square
feet and is similar in size and outer
design to the Mystic Lake Casino next
door. It will have eleven retail stores
owned and operated by tribal members. Those stores will include Indian
gift and jewelry shops, aNative American art gallery, and a beautyshop.lt
also has a steakhouse and lounge that
seats 300 and will feature nightly
country western entertainment.
In addition, the new casino complex
contains a cafe that seats another 150
in an atrium setting. Other services
Mystic Lake spends $24 million
each year for goods and services and
almost all of that money is spentin the
local community. According to
Patrick Murphy, Director of Public
Relations, for Little Six, Inc., there
may be plans to move their Bingo
Palace, presently located inthe Mystic
Lake Casino, to the new casino and
use that space for stage shows. He also
said there are plans for a strip mall and
gas station near the gaming and entertainment complex. Parking for the
new casino looks more like an airport
Dakota/ See page 3
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