CHAIRMAN’S REPORT
Judge Upholds
Expulsion
Lisa Brown’s petition to appeal her ex
pulsion from the Tribal Council was heard
in court by Chief Judge Calvin Gantenbein.
On June 8, 2009, the judge upheld the
Tribal Council’s decision to expel Lisa.
Briefly, in regards to the situation prior
to June 8, a petition for a hearing went first
before the judge on April 22 when Lisa
requested that the matter be set-over until,
among other things, she could retain an
other spokesperson (the person designated
failed to show up and had not notified the
court he would not be present).
Lisa requested audio tapes and min
utes of many previous Tribal Council
meetings that provided specific references
to the expulsion action. Based on that first
hearing, the judge, after listening to the
parties, ordered the petitioner’s request for
audio tapes be denied because she already
had been given complete transcripts of all
the meeting minutes she had requested.
In regards to copies of the documents
Lisa requested, the judge said in part:
“Discovery is allowed regarding any
matter not privileged which is relevant in
defense of a party seeking discovery. It is
not to be used as a fishing expedition or
to gather irrelevant material... The Court
is concerned only about the allegations
against petitioner betweenn February 9,
2009, and February 21, 2009.
“Petitioner stated that she wants
these records to prove that Tribal Council
members and the administration have, in
the past, made decisions that had negative
results on the Tribe. This is immaterial
and irrelevant to this case.
“The only issue is whether Petitioner’s
conduct between February 9, 2009, and
February 21,2009, placed tribal assets in
jeopardy. Furthermore, Plaintiff already
has access to the Gaming Regulatory Act,
the Notice of Violation, the Settlement
Agreement and the Charter.
“Therefore, this court denies all of
Plaintiff's motions for Discover' as being
irrelevant, immaterial, and for electing an
undue burden on the tribe.”
In arriving at his final decision, the
judge carefully considered the five alle-
Delores Pigs ley
gations against Lisa Brown listed in the
Feb. 21,2009, Tribal Council resolution,
namely:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
According to his final niling, the chief
judge denied:
“... the Motion for Revocation of Siletz
Tribal Council Resolution 2009-136 since
it is a duplication of the initial Petition. This
Court denies the Motion for Revocation of
one year bar by the Siletz Tribal Gaming
Commission. The Siletz Gaming Com
mission is a separate legal entity and not a
party to the proceeding. Furthermore, they
have their own appeal process in which Ms.
Brown is participating.”
The Tribal Council spent a great
deal of valuable time on this issue and
the expulsion decision. The court upheld
council's actions in their entirety. It was
an unfortunate chain of events compli
cated by several judicial filings. It also
took weeks for Chief Judge Gantenbein
to deliberate and render his final decision
on Lisa’s appeal.
Four Eastern Oregon
Tribes Commemorate
Oregon’s 150th
The weather was perfect in Siletz and
on the coast for our Tribe’s Memorial Day
Ceremony. Contributing to this special
day was Tribal member Denise Krax-
berger’s moving and memorable address
to those of us in attendance.
Denise talked about her career in the
National Guard and how she was influ
enced by her mother. She is an excellent
example of someone who, in spite of her
initial objections, stuck with her agree
ment with the Guard and ended up making
it her lifelong career. It was a very' mov
ing and significant presentation we shall
long remember.
Adding to the occasion were the
lovely flowers and beautifully decorated
grave sites. And many thanks to the Cul
tural Committee for a great meal.
On May 16, I attended the com
memoration of Oregon's 150th anniversary
in The Dalles. The four Eastern Oregon
Tribes began by welcoming incoming
canoes on the Columbia River at Celilo
Village.
Then the Tribes paraded through the
city of The Dalles. A pow-wow capped off
the afternoon at the rodeo grounds. Along
with the many floats and horses, the chiefs
and Indians of the various Tribes looked
great in their full regalia. It was an awe
inspiring event.
Video: The Five
Western Oregon Tribes
As reported in previous issues of Si
letz News, all Oregon Tribes celebrated
the 150lh anniversary of the state of Or
egon becoming part of the Union with a
major pow-wow on Jan. 31 at the Oregon
State Fair Pavilion in Salem.
We were all very proud of the fact that
the five Western Oregon Tribes worked
together to complete a composite video
with each Tribe featuring its individual
Tribal history.
On Sept. 4, the five Tribes will have
one more scheduled intertribal activity
to commemorate Oregon’s 150,h birthday
and to share our culture and history with
those attending the Oregon State Fair.
We will have the stage on that day
from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and also will have
room for Tribal displays and craft activi
ties. Each Tribe will be responsible for its
own individual presentations and activi
ties on the stage.
In addition, Sept. 4 will recognize
all veterans by admitting them to the fair
for free. A veterans’ parade also will take
place in the morning. More information
will be made available and announced as
plans for this day are completed.
Siletz News Letters Policy
Send letters to:
Siletz News, a publication of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, is
published once a month. Our editorial policy encourages input from readers about
stories printed in Siletz News and other tribal issues.
All letters must include the author’s signature, address, and phone number in
order to be considered for publication. Siletz News reserves the right to edit any
letter for clarity and length, and to refuse publication of any letter or any part of
a letter that may contain profane language, libelous statements, personal attacks,
or unsubstantiated statements.
Not all letters are guaranteed publication upon submission. Published let
ters do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Siletz News, Tribal employees, or
Tribal Council.
Please type or write legibly. Letters longer than 450 words may be edited for
length as approved by Tribal Council Resolution #96-142.
Siletz News
P.O. Box 549
Siletz, OR 97380-0549
541-444-8291 or
800-922-1399, ext. 1291
Fax: 541-444-2307
E-mail: pias@ctsi.nsn.us
Please note: The general manager
of the Siletz Tribe is the editor-in-chief
of Siletz News.
2
Acting in a manner inconsistent with
the supervision of an employee
Making racial comments
Jeopardizing the assets of the Tribe
Interfering with the day-to-day opera
tions of the Tribe’s gaming operation
Abuse of authority
Kraxberger Inspires
Memorial Day
Gathering
•
Siletz News
•
July 2009
Editor-in-Chief: Brenda Bremner
Editor: Diane Rodriquez
Assistant: Natasha Kavanaugh
Wilkinson Manuscript
Sent to Publisher
Charles Wilkinson informed us that
the completed manuscript on the book he
has written about the history of the Siletz
Tribe was sent to the University of Wash
ington Press on June 1. The long-awaited
book will be published by the University
Press. More will be written about the book
in a future issue of Siletz News.
Congratulations to
Graduating Seniors
To our graduating seniors - congratu
lations! I know you worked hard to achieve
your diplomas and I wish you all great suc
cess as you face enormous challenges. To
Timmy and all other graduates, well done
on your years of accomplishments and best
wishes as you face your future!
TICC Board Has
Vacancies
Résumés are being accepted for the
Tenas Illahee Childcare Center Board of
Directors. Two board positions currently
are vacant.
If interested, please submit your résu
mé to Tribal Council, c/o Executive Secre
tary, P.O. Box 549, Siletz, OR 97380-0549
by 4:30 p.m. on Aug. 7, 2009.
Siletz News is free to enrolled
Siletz Tribal members. For all others,
a $12 annual subscription fee applies,
Please make checks payable to CTSI
and mail to Siletz News.
Name: I
Address:
Deadline for the August issue is
July 10. Submission of articles and
photos is encouraged. Please see the
Passages Policy on page 23 when sub
mitting items for Passages.
Member of the Native American
Journalists Association
I
i
i
।
.
Phone: '
Change of address: Tribal mem
bers - call the Enrollment Department
at 541-444-8258 or 800-922-1399,
ext. 1258; all others-call the newspa
per office.