Image provided by: The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs; Warm Springs, OR
About Spilyay tymoo. (Warm Springs, Or.) 1976-current | View Entire Issue (July 8, 2004)
SCO OrColl E 73 .568 v. 29 no. 14 July 8, 004 Univeriity of Oregon Library .Received oni 07-14-04 Spilyay tyioo. P.O. Box 870 igs, OR 97761 Tymo Acquisition Dept.Serials Knight Library 1299 University of Oregon Eugene OR 97403-1205 PRSRTSTD Warm Springs, OR 97761 50 cents July 8, 2004 Vol. 29, No. 14 Coyote News, est. 1976 Spilyay No charges in boarding school death SALEM (AP) - Staff members at the Chemawa Indian School will not be charged in the death of Cindy Gil bert Sohappy, who was 16 when she died of acute alcohol poisoning. Involuntary manslaughter charges were considered against workers who had contact with Sohappy on the night she died last December, said Bill Will iams, an assistant U.S. attorney in Port land But Williams said there was not enough evidence to charge the work ers, who left Sohappy alone in a cell for three hours at the Salem boarding school, which is run by the U.S. Bu reau of Indian Affairs. An involuntary manslaughter charge means that someone had acted in a negligent way, knowing hit actions could kill a person. "Absent any additional or new evi dence that hasn't been discovered at this point, there won't be any criminal charges in this case," Williams said. The girl's mother, Renee Sohappy, was disappointed with the decision. "They're getting off scot-free for my daughter's death," Sohappy said. "It left a long scar on me and my kids. What is it going to take for them to realize what they did to my daughter was wrong?" Sohappy's attorney, Foster Glass of Bend, said he understood the decision, noting the high threshold to prove criminal liability. He said his client still might pursue a suit claiming wrongful death and vio lations of Sohappy's civil rights because the girl was locked in a cell without due process and did not get medical atten tion while detained. Officials familiar with the case say Sohappy was put in a cell at about 8:20 p.m. Dec. 6. Roughly 45 minutes later, the girl flailed on the floor for a few minutes. She then remained motionless for two hours before a worker discov ered she was not breathing. Sohappy was found dead by Salem firefighters. In March, Ed Parisian, the head of the BIA's education programs, said stu dents would no longer be held in cells. Police, fire activity slow during holiday weekends The police and fire activity were slow over the Fourth of July weekend. The same was also true during Pi-Ume-Sha, said Officer Bob Medina of the Warm Springs Police Depart ment. There were a few house par ties during the weekends, but the number of problems for police was low, said Medina. If anything, the Fourth of July weekend was even quieter than Pi-Ume-Sha, in terms of police response calls, he said. On July 4 the number of fire calls was down from previous years, said Jason Schjoll, of the Warm Springs Fire Department. There were a few accidental fires from fireworks, and a couple that are being investi gated as possibly reckless acts. But there were no cases of ar son, said Schjoll. The few fires that did break out as a result of fireworks were contained to grassy areas around homes, and no structures were damaged. Tribal leaders condemn spill plan By Dave McMechnn Spilyay Tymoo Tribal leaders are opposed to a plan by the Bonneville Power Ad ministration to reduce the amount of water spilled over Columbia and Snake River dams this summer. The opposition comes from lead ers of all the tribes of the Colum bia basin. Of the BPA plan Ron Suppah, Council Chairman of the Confed erated Tribes of Warm Springs, AT i 1 1 i; 4 '.(' Revonne Johnson was named the Pi-Ume-Sha Powwow. See pages Governor discusses future of casino By Bill Rhoades Spilyay Tymoo Govenor Ted Kulongoski said the Confederated Tribes and the state are making progress in their discussions to establish a new tribal casino, but he would not comment on its probable location. "I'm confident we're going in the right direction," said Kulongoski. "We would both like to see it happen sooner rather than later, but we want to make sure we do it right." Kulongoski spoke to Warm Springs reporters just prior to the Governor's Banquet at Kah-Nee-Ta on June 25. He answered a number of questions regarding the Tribes' request for a new Warm Springs casino and tried to frame the ongoing negotiations in a positive light "I don't think there's any state in the union that has better relations with tribes," said Kulongoski in reference to Oregon. "We understand the sover eign nature of the nine federally rec ognized tribes here. We know the tribes have a right to self-sufficiency." In choosing a location for a new tribal casino, tribal members have shown overw helming support for a site in the Columbia River Gorge. Tribal property in Hood River pro vides one option, but the local citizens said, "It's like they have deaf ears. They're willing to sacrifice the fish for financial benefit." BPA has proposed the reduced sum mer spill in order to generate more elec tricity for sales to California utilities. Water that's spilled bypasses the power generators at dams on the riv ers, but helps speed juvenile fish along their way downstream. Under the BPA plan, spills will stop a month early at Bonneville and The Dalles dams. As an offset, the BPA FA ' t At m Selena BoiseSpilyay Junior Court Queen of the 2004 8 and 9 for more photos. have openly opposed such a move. The city of Cascade Locks would like to have the casino and there is land within the city's industrial complex that would accommodate development. Not everyone wants to see a casino in Cascade Locks. Environmental and land-use organizations have vowed to protect the integrity of the Columbia River Gorge, which has gained national recognition for its outstanding natural features. The controversy makes any devel opment in the Columbia Gorge politi cally sensitive, requiring diplomacy from all the negotiating parties "The biggest issue is the site of a casino on the Columbia Gorge," said Kulongoski. "The Gorge is a big issue to the people of Oregon. It's a very big step and I can't stress it enough." The Gorge is also extremely impor tant from a tribal prospective. Cascade Locks and Hood River both lie within the tribe's ceded territory. Tribal mem bers and their ancestors have lived in the Gorge since time immemorial, uti lizing the area's resources to provide subsistence. Tribal members are now hoping the Gorge will provide them with enough economic benefits to erase economic doldrums and support vital tribally funded programs. would buy and release water stored by Idaho Power. Sherars Falls The proposed mitigation is of no benefit to fish relied upon by fisher men of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs and other Columbia River tribes, said Harold Blackwolf, chair of the off-reservation fish and wildlife committee. The BPA spill plan, said Blackwolf, "could mean the elimination of the Construction starting soon on gymnasium By Dave McMechan Spilyay Tymoo Construction is going to start soon on a new gymnasium at the Warm Springs Elementary School. A construction contractor has been hired, and the timeframe for comple tion is around December, said school board member Jeff Sanders. The project has an estimated cost of $1.3 million The gymnasium that burned down was on an east-west alignment, while the new one will be north and south. Even while work is going forward on the new gym, school and tribal offi cials continue to discuss the plans for a new Warm Springs Elementary School. A site on East Tenino has been the preferred location, but the school dis trict and tribal budgets prevent devel opment there for the immediate future. Meanwhile, the insurance company that is paying for the new gymnasium has been sitting on the money long enough, said Sanders. "We have to move forward," he said. The tribes and the school district have each pledged $4 million for con struction of a new elementary school. The problem is that building a school on East Tenino has an estimated cost of $13 million. If one day a new school is to be built on East Tenino Road, then the plan is to have a gymnasium there as teThe tribes are entitled to benefit from this, but as governor, I have to see that the state benefits as well. " Gov. Kulongoski Kulongoski understands the current situation and knows the tribal economy needs a boost. "I'm aware of the situ ation in Warm Springs," said the gov ernor. "If we can improve the economy in Warm Springs a lot of other things will fall in place." The governor says it's all a matter of balancing the needs of tribes with those of Oregon's general population. He says he understands the economic urgency facing the tribal economy and he offers hope through an administra tive agenda that promotes economic development. "The tribes are entitled to benefit from this, but as governor, I have to see that the state benefits as well," said Kulongoski. The governor said when it's time to make an announcement about the casino's siting, it will come jointly from the tribes and the state. He is not willing to put a timeframe on making the announcement, but he Sherars Falls fishery." Tribal biologists believe that fall chinook spawning above Sherars Falls migrate to the ocean later in the sum mer than other fish runs. The juvenile fish moving to the ocean from the Deschutes have to pass both The Dalles and the Bonneville dams, two that are targeted for reduced spillage. The BPA spill plan could mean the loss of 1,000 returning fish above the falls, according to tribal biologists. See SPILL PLAN on paje 16 If one day a new school is to be built on East Tenino Road, then the plan is to have a gymnasium there as well well. The gym that is going to be at the site of the old one is going to be larger than a normal elementary school gym nasium, said Sanders. This larger gym would then be suit able to accommodate various uses by the public, he said. There is also on-going discussion of Warm Springs developing a charter school. One idea is' to have a charter school, such as a high school, with 20 to 25 students, in order to test the idea and see how it works, said Sanders. Over three years ago It was in June of 2001 that tribal members approved a referendum for construction of a new elementary school. The vote wasn't even close, as the ratio was more than four-to-one in fa vor of the plan. The proposal calls for the tribes and the district to share the costs. The school district is to pay half of the school's cost through lease pay ments to the tribes over 20 years. is confident the parties are moving for ward in a positive direction and if they can clear a few important hurtles, the process could come to a quick conclu sion. A threshold issue in reaching a quick conclusion is the treatment of lands held by the Tribe's in Hood River. Another issue is the retention of fu ture profits and the percentage of ca sino revenues allocated to statewide purposes. "We won't make an announcement until we reach an agreement on all criti cal issues," said Kulongoski. 2002 referendum It just a little over two years ago that tribal members of the Confederated Tribes approved the Columbia Gorge casino plan. Close to 1,000 tribal member vot ers went to the polls, with three-quarters casting their ballots in favor of a Gorge casino. The 2002 vote in favor of the Gorge plan is even greater than the 1999 vote on the question of whether or not the tribes should con tinue in the business of gaming. Of the two potential Gorge sites, Cascade Locks is located less than an hour's drive from the Poftland metro area, while the Hood River property is over an hour's drive.
