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About Spilyay tymoo. (Warm Springs, Or.) 1976-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 13, 2010)
Spilygy Tym Coyote News, est. 1976 January 13, 2010 P.0. Box 870 Warm Springs, OR 97761 Branch Matthew 1200 SW Park Ave. Portland OR 97205 ECRWSS Postal Patron U.S. Postage PRSRTSTD iv v a n n o p rin g s , OR 97761 Voi. 35, No. 1 50 cents New year will see 25th Tribal Council B y D ave M cM ech a n Spilyay Tymoo Tribal m em bers this spring will elect the Twenty-Fifth Tribal Coun cil o f the C onfederated Tribes o f Warm Springs. Within the -next several weeks, the membership o f the three districts will nominate their candidates for the Coun cil. The current Council took office on May 1, 2007; so the new Council will take their oath o f office around that same time this year. As stated in the tribal Constitution o f 1938, the elected Council members serve terms o f three years. The incumbent Council members are: Simnasho District representatives: R on S uppah, C o u n cil ch airm an ; Aurolyn Stwyer, Council vice-chair w om an; C ouncilm an R afael Queahpama; and Warm Springs Chief Delvis Heath. Agency D istrict representatives: Councilmen Stanley “Buck” Smith and Austin Greene, Councilwoman Bernice Mitchell; and Wasco Chief N elson Wallulatum. Seekseekqua District representa tives: Councilmen Wendell Jim and Wilson Wewa, and Paiute Chief Joseph Moses. The Tribal Constitution and By-laws o f 1938 established the Council as in cluding one chief from each district (serving for life); three representatives from Agency and Simnasho, and two from Seekseequa. There are currently 2,844 members who are qualified to vote in the elec tion. Tribal members 21 and older, or married, have the right to vote in the election. Current voting data from the Vital Statistics'Department reflects the youthful makeup o f the Confederated Tribes. The data shows the number o f qualified voters in each age group. There are 127 qualified voters who are 21 years o f age, the single largest group. Next largest is the 23-year-oIds, with 123 qualified votéis. Third largest is the 25-year-olds, with 108 qualified voters; followed by 26- year-olds, and then 24-year-olds. Council powers The elections are “by secret ballot or prevailing custom, as desired by the people o f the district,” according to the Tribal Constitution. Secret ballots counted by the Election Committee has been the means o f election for the at least the past several Council elections. The Tribal Council is the central governing body o f the Confeder ated Tribes o f Warm Springs. The Tribal Constitution defines the pow ers- o f the Council. Some o f these powers are, for example: To manage the economic affairs o f the Confederated Tribes and to appropriate available funds for pub lic purposes; and, To charter subordinate organiza tions for economic purposes and to regulate the activities o f all coop erative associations o f members of the Confederated Tribes, among sev eral other enumerated powers. Hoops season under 'way The . Madras White Buffalo girls basketball season is under way. The girls had an 8-2 preseason record, but then lost their opener last Friday to Summit. This Friday, Jan. 15, they play Pendleton at Pendleton, and then face Mt. View at home on Tuesday, Jan. 19. In past years, girls from the tribes have been som e o f the key players on the White Buffalos, and this year Police seek help with drug, gang enforcement B y Terri H arber Spilyay Tymoo The Warm Springs Police D epart ment is pursuing designation o f a High- Intensity D rug Trafficking Area, ac cording to Police Chief Carmen Smith. “I believe we’re going to get it,” he said. “I think it’ll work for everybody” Better known as HIDTA, the clas sification would allow the tribe’s police to better work with other tribes to gather and share inform ation about drug and gang activity. It would also pave the way for other cooperative law enforcement ventures among area tribes, and help the Warm Springs department boost its chances for obtaining grants to offset operation costs, he said. This might include, for example, of ficer training on how to spot and safely avoid booby traps set near illegal mari juana growing sites, Smith said. K eeping track o f suspects and known offenders is crucial because, Smith said, these people tend to move from one tribal area to another “when things get hot.” The recent discoveries o f marijuana farms and the increase in gang activity here on the reservation make obtain ing this designation im portant, he said. F our large pot-grow ing sites nave been found on the W arm Springs Res is no exception. There are nine play ers who are tribal members or closely tied to the tribes. The White Buffalo girls varsity basketball team players are: (back row left to right, name followed by grade) Rachel Simmons (11), JoElla Smith (11), Marissa Ahern (12),Abby Scott (10), Klesia Plazola (12), Cheyenne Wahnetah (11), and Karlen Yallup (12); (front left to right, name and grade) Merima Made (12), Krisit Olney (12), Kali Kaltsukis (12), and Mallory Smith (10). ervation since July 2007. The m ost recent discovery, in August 2009, was o f a location where authorities found more than 1,600 plants, according to previous reports. Though the focus is primarily on drug and gang activity, Smith believes the designation could also assist Warm Springs and other tribes’ police forces to keep order during large-scale events, such as at multi-tribe pow wows. Reservations have small law en forcement agencies because they po lice areas with low populations. Money to pay for borrowing officers as the need arises could be more easily found that it is now, he said. HH Dave M cM echan/Spilyay See P O L IC E on page 9 Police weigh benefits of non-lethal weapons Miss W.S. Pageant A test o f the safety and Tribal Council asks effectiveness o f pepper for information on Jan. 22 about use o f less ball guns was expected dangerous devices B y T erri H a rb er Spilyay Tymoo The Warm Springs Police D epart ment may add some new.weapons to their arsenal, specifically devices that are less deadly than firearms. The Tribal Council requested infor mation on the viability o f having po lice officers use non-lethal weapons and heard about the subject during a meet ing on Jan. 5. A taser can be “a very effective weapon” because it can reduce resis tance to arrest, which, in turn, would reduce injuries to officers and suspects, said Jim Soules, branch general man ager o f public safety for the tribe. “I ’d imagine we’d want to do P.R. work before we introduce it,” said C o u n cil C h airm an R on Suppah. “They’d be shocked - pardon the pun!” “I f we do bring it, it won’t be popu lar with the people who’d get it used on them,” Soules replied. Residents will be made aware o f the addition o f any new weapons before officers start using them in public, he emphasized. Using a taser instead o f a gun can have drawbacks, however, especially when a suspect continues to fight after being hit once with a 50,000-volt shock. Suspects heavily under the influence of alcohol and drugs often require mul tiple shocks because they’re more likely to struggle. And the more shocks some one receives, the more likely the weapon will cause physical harm, he said. Suspects with severe mental prob lems, specifically psychosis, also try to fight through taser shocks, he said. N o suspect apprehended at depart ments where he’s worked during his career died from taser shock. And worldwide, death by stun guns is “a rare thing,” he said. “It’s not as lethal as a gunshot.” O ther possibilities would be rifles that shoot beanbags and pepper ball guns, Soules told the council.- this week... “T he whole purpose is to make people safer,” he said o f potential ad ditions to officers’ toolkits. Each weapon has specific purposes and situations where it might work best. Tasers, for instance, are electric guns with probes that produce a shock that would incapacitate most people, but not cause them perm anent harm . T he weapon is best suited for a shooting length o f up to 25 feet, Soules said. And each type o f weapon “has dif ferent applications and carries some potential hazards for side effects,” he said. According to news reports, pepper and beanbag projectiles have killed people on occasion, particularly when used improperly or when trying to con trol crowds. Both types o f these arms are sometimes referred to as “riot guns” and are usually designed to work best from a distance. A traditional firearm might not be appropriate for officers to use when a suspect is highly despondent and armed. The person could be talking about committing suicide while holding a gun or knife and randomly turning it toward himself or herself, at police, or at anyone else nearby, for example, Soules told the council. An array o f armaments would “provide us with more options,” he said. Warm Springs officers currently carry pepper spray, baton, hand cuffs and firearms. The department also has a dog that goes out on pa trol and tracks suspects, among other duties. A test o f the safety and effec tiveness o f pepper ball guns was expected this week, Soules added. N o tests or demonstrations o f o th e r n o n -leth al w eapons are scheduled. The Miss Warm Springs Pageant is set for the evening o f Friday, Jan.- 22 at the Agency Longhouse. Contestants can turn in their entry forms to the Tribal Council office. The deadline for entering is this Friday, Jan. 15 at 5 p.m. Interested applicants must be 18-24 years old at the time o f the pageant. The applicant must never have been married, cohabitating or have depen dents. The applicant must be drug and al cohol free, an enrolled member o f the Confederated Tribes o f Warm Springs, and a resident o f the reservation for at least one year, although school is taken into consideration. Also, the applicant must maintain residency on the reservation for a year after winning the title, although school again will be taken into consideration. For details, call the Tribal Council office at 553-3257.
