News from Indian Country
Pgge 9 Spiiyay Tymoo
Mdrcb 23, 2011
Navajo slush fund cases overwhelm tribal courts
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) -
Dozens of criminal cases against
form er and current N avajo
Nation lawmakers have over
whelmed the tribal court system
to the extent that defendants
must pay for jury trials them
selves, if that’s what they re
quest, and the prosecutor has
been asked to consider turning
over cases to the federal gov
ernment.
Nearly 260 complaints were
filed with the W indow Rock
D istrict Court last O ctober,
charging 78 people in the alleged
misuse of the Tribal Council’s
discretionary fund. Some of the
defendants still haven’t been ar
raigned, and many of those who
have want jury trials.
It’s a demand that the tribal
court system cannot m eet.
None of the tribe’s 10 district
courts that manage 51,000 civil
and criminal cases have set aside
funds for jurors in their budgets.
Ju ry trials aren’t common in
tribal court in any event, with
only eight being held on the res
ervation since 2007.
“In normal circumstances,
the courts are expected to guard
against the impairment of the
defense. In this instance, the jus
tice system itself is impaired by
the flood of cases and the en
masse jury demands,” the tribe’s
Supreme Court wrote in a re
cent decision. “It is apparent that
no workable solution is yet in
place.”
The lack of resources in tribal
courts is a common complaint
in Indian Country that includes
funding and staffing shortages,
and limited capacity to conduct
jury trials.
The Navajo Supreme Court
ruling came out nine days ahead
of a U.S. Government Account
ability Office study that looks
at how the primary federal agen
cies tasked with supporting tribal
justice systems worked together.
The GAO released its findings
Thursday.
The Interior and Justice de
partm ents have made public
safety in tribal communities a
prio rity, but the GAO said
they’ve focused more on deten
tion programs than tribal courts.
Justice officials told the U.S.
Senate Indian Affairs Commit
tee in October 2009 that they
would better coordinate with
Interior officials to support tribal
courts, but plans hadn’t come
to fruition a year later, the GAO
reported.
The U.S. Bureau of Indian
Affairs, which commissioned a
review of 90 tribal court sys
tem s in 2005, also has not
shared its assessment with jus
tice officials. The GAO said
greater cooperation between
Justice and Interior departments
could minimize duplication of
efforts in trying to aid tribal jus
tice.
The BIA reported that both
agencies provided funding to a
single tribe to purchase hard
ware and software for a case
management system but didn't
consult one another. And then
the tribe never used the system
because it didn’t have money
for training.
“Sharing information about
training and technical assistance
could help ensure that BIA and
DOJ avoid such situations,” the
GAO said.
The office urged the involved
federal agencies to develop
ways to share information. The
BIA said it plans to send a liai
son to the Justice Department's
Office of Tribal Justice to bet
ter collaborate.
The GAO in terv iew ed
judges, prosecutors, law en
forcement and court administra
tors from tribes in Arizona, New
M exico, N orth D akota and
South Dakota and focused on
criminal law. Officials from the
12 tribes, including the Navajo
N ation, expressed concern
about limited sentencing author
ity, lack of jails pace, encroach
ment upon judicial indepen
dence from tribal officials and
not having enough resources for
day-to-day court operations.
Each of their court systems
are partially or fully funded by
the federal government.
All of the tribes were upset
with the federal government for
declining to prosecute half of
Tribes plan major casino expansions
TOPPENISH, Wash. (AP) -
The Yakama Nation plans to
break ground in May on a $90
million casino expansion that will
add a six-story hotel, conference
facilities and a spa on its central
Washington reservation.
Across the Columbia River,
the Confederated Tribes of the
Umatilla Indian Reservation are
plugging away on a $67 million
project of their own. The expan
sion includes more casino space,
a Cineplex and high-rise hotel
amid the wheat fields and cattle
ranches of northeast Oregon.
For the first time, revenue at
Indian casinos declined across
the country in 2009, thanks in
large p art to the econom ic
downturn, but that isn’t prevent
ing tribes from expanding their
gambling operations in big ways.
Dozens of new casinos and
expansion projects have been
completed in the past two years
nationally, and dozens more are
planned, according to the latest
Indian Gaming Industry Report.
“The economy will improve
at some point, construction
costs are down, and tribes are
trying to prepare for the future,”
an alyst A lan M eister said.
“When things turn around, you
don't want to have to start from
scratch. You want to be able to
hit the ground running.”
The Yakam as announced
their expansion plans earlier this
month amid the dings and buzz
ers o f slot machines in their
existing Legends Casino.
The tribe’s general member
ship approved the expansion
March 8, tribal council chairman
Harry Smiskin said. The project
will enable the tribe to convert
existing gambling space into a
29,000-square-foot events cen
ter to offer more entertainment
and, in turn, draw crowds.
“In order for Legends Casino
to remain competitive, we have
to grow with the market,” he
said. “Thé expansion is some
thing we all look forward to very
much and is something we know
will be beneficial to the tribe.”
Smiskin said the tribe hopes
to add 150-200 jobs once the
development is complete in 18
months.
For the Umatilla tribes, the
expansion marks a new effort
to draw a younger crowd to the
casino already frequented by
gray-haired slot-lovers. The tribe
lures visitors with a casino, small
hotel, RV park, golf course and
museum, and the expansion will
add 20,000 square feet of gam
bling space, a four-screen movie
theater and a 10-story hotel.
“We wanted to build a bea
con to draw people here, and
the only way to do that was to
go up,” said Gary George, chief
executive o fficer o f the
Umatillas’ Wildhorse Resort and
Casino.
The tribe estimates 60 per
cent of its visitors come from
the local area and within a 70-
mile radius. The goal of the ex
pansion is to become a regional
destination resort appealing to
residents within 200 miles of the
casino, George said.
Some 237 Indian tribes
across the country operate casi
nos in 28 states. Tribes use the
revenue for education, eco
nomic development, health care,
police and fire protection, hous
ing and cultural and charitable
works.
In 2009, revenue fell for the
first time at Indian casinos across
the country, declining 1 percent
from a year earlier, according
to the report.
However, commercial gam
ing overall has been hurt by the
recession, while Indian gaming
has been able to withstand some
of the economic downturns in
recent years, Meister said. Even
though there was a decline, it
was only 1 percent, and the pro
jection for Indian gaming is posi
tive overall.
George acknowledged that
some tribes have experienced
financial difficulties because
they overextended and overbuilt
their casinos. That has not been
the case with the Umatillas and
their Wildhorse Resort and Ca
sino, he said.
“We’re very leery of reinvest
ing without clear thought of
where we’re going and how we
get there,” he said. “Revenues
have been flat in the last few
years, but in this economy, banks
would say flat is the new up.”
Sm iskin also called the
economy a “definite concern.”
“When people don’t have dis
posable income anymore, that’s
one of the things that gets cut,”
he said. “But with all the demo
graphics and marketing analysis,
we feel a strategy of this nature
will add income to the Yakama
Nation.”
Besides, he said, with the
U m atillas already expanding
their casino and marketing to
consumers in the Yakamas’ ter
ritory, his tribe has to send a
message across the river: “We’re
not horsing around.”
all cases referred from reserva control o f the slow -m oving
tions and said that it signals to cases.
The justices rejected David
victims and criminals that jus
tice doesn’t exist in Indian Coun Jordan’s allegations that the spe
cial prosecutor and the judge
try.
Tribes often rely on the fed overseeing the cases engaged in
eral government to prosecute ex parte communication that
cases because of limited sen violated his clients' rights. Jor
tencing ability, few jail spaces dan declined to comment on the
and overburdened court sys decision.
The high court sent the mat
tems. Both the BIA under Inte
rior and the FBI under DOJ are ter back to the lower courts and
charged with investigating ma ordered them to try defendants
jor crimes on Indian reserva together who share conspiracy
tions and with referring the cases charges and have them fund
their own jury trials or accept
to federal prosecutors.
The GAO said the results of bench trials. Individual defen
the 12-tribe study are not a gen dants would have to pay $2,500
eralization of the hundreds of or co-defendants could share a
federally recognized tribes, but cost of $15,000.
The court further urged the
provide useful perspectives
about challenges they face in prosecutor in the case to seek
the federal government’s help if
resolving crimes.
The Navajo Nation Supreme the cases cannot be resolved
Court said tribal court resources through plea bargains, settle
were already scarce before the ments or tribal courts within a
crim inal charges w ere filed reasonable amount of time. The
against current and former law complaints alleged that the de
makers. A defense attorney for fendants took a combined $1.9
two dozen o f those charged million in tribal funding meant
asked the high court to take to aid Navajos in need.
American Indian leaders
urge business expansion
LAS VEGAS (AP) - Ameri
can Indian tribal leaders are urg
ing other tribes to go beyond
gambling and tobacco when it
comes to generating revenue for
their economies.
President Robert Porter of
the Seneca Nation of Indians
told tribal government leaders
and entrepreneurs in Las Vegas
on Tuesday that his tribe in New
York state has three casinos and
sells plenty of cigarettes.
But he says that’s too narrow
to ensure the tribe’s future.
Porter says tribes should
work with the United States gov
ernment to try to get more free
dom over their land and money.
Chairman Robert Martin of
the Morongo Band of Mission
Indians says tribes must be will
ing to consider various kinds of
investments.
The Morongo Band has a
casino in southern California,
but also owns a 36-hole golf
course and other businesses.
Gov signs bill to keep UND
Fighting Sioux nickname
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) -
N orth D akota Gov. Jack
Dalrymple signed legislation that
requires the University of North
D akota to keep its Fighting
Sioux nickname.
The signing was reported last
w eek in the H ouse journal,
which is the official record of
the business of the North Da-
kota House.
The governor’s office made
no public announcement of the
signing.
The NCAA considers UND’s
Fighting Sioux nickname to be
hostile to American Indians, and
it will impose sanctions on the
university if it’s kept.
IRA’ S SALES & S ER V IC E, INC.
Birthday wishes ...
Mom, We wish you a happy
Happy birthday to Jus
tice Allan, April 19. Love, birthday. We love yo u and want
to thank you fo r all y o u ’ve done
with all my heart, Dad.
Happy belated birthday to Na- fo r us. Fove, Ty-Maureen-Curtis
Na, Diane Frank-Felix. Hove, and Grandson Ikiaka.
Myrna & Family.
B lessed birthday w ishes to
Happy belated birthday to
Socorro
Cuevas, “This is the day
Diane, with much love - Lillian
which the F ord has made; F et
& Family.
us rejoice and be gla d in it. ”
I would like to wish a (Psalm 118:24, NASB). We
happy birthday to my wife love yo u always, Monica, Cody,
Carol Ann Lawrence on Keanu and F il Kody.
March 24, from her hus
band. I love you so much—
I wish you many more to
come. Love, Daniel.
H ap p y B irth d ay to H ec
tor; from M onica, Cody 8c
Boys. Love yo u!
Happy Birthday, Hec
tor! May you have a good
day! Love, Mike, Cecilia,
M alia, Yesenia, Ava and
Ushnum.
Happy birthday to
everyone with a birthday this
month! From the Spilyay. ^
Treaty, Salmon Talk at Lodge
i VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
3
Seeking community members
to be school crossing guards,
training provided.
Contact Ashley @ 553-2204
There will be a talk from 7-9:30 p.m. this
Wednesday, March 23 at High Lookee Lodge.
The talk will be about the Treaty, salmon, tradi
tions, and about our vanishing culture. All are wel
come.
Presented by Terry Courtney.
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