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Spring Break camp
— pg. 12
APRIL 1, 2016
Court hears
Cowlitz appeal
on March 18
By Dean Rhodes
Smoke Signals editor
A
n appeal of a December 2014 ruling that
favored the Department of the Interior’s
decision to take land into trust for the
Cowlitz Tribe near La Center, Wash., was heard
Friday, March 18, by the U.S. Court of Appeals
for the District of Columbia in Washington, D.C.
The two main appellants – the Confederated
Tribes of Grand Ronde and Clark County, Wash.
– were represented by attorneys Lawrence Rob-
bins and Benjamin Sharp, respectively, while
Department of Justice attorney John Smeltzer
represented the Department of the Interior and
Robert Luskin represented the Cowlitz Tribe.
The three-judge panel that heard the appeal
included Cornelia Pillard, Robert Wilkins and
Harry Edwards. Each side received approx-
imately 15 minutes apiece to present their
arguments.
At issue was a lower court decision by District
Court Judge Barbara Rothstein that favored the
department’s decision to take land into trust for
a Cowlitz Reservation just 15 miles north of the
Vancouver/Portland metropolitan area.
Attending the hearing were Grand Ronde
Tribal Council members Chairman Reyn Leno,
Vice Chair Jack Giffen Jr., Brenda Tuomi, Jon
A. George, Tonya Gleason-Shepek and Denise
Harvey. Tribal Attorney Rob Greene, Assistant
Tribal Attorney Kim D’Aquila and Tribal Council
Chief of Staff Stacia Martin also attended.
Robbins said during the appeal hearing that
for the Department of the Interior to take land
into trust for the Cowlitz Tribe under the Indian
Reorganization Act of 1934, Interior Secretary
Sally Jewell must make two independent deci-
sions: That the Cowlitz Tribe was a recognized
Tribe and that the Cowlitz were under federal
jurisdiction.
“The Record of Decision in this case miscon-
strues the IRA in both of those separate and
Sisters Cloey, left, and Riley Freeman get candy from the Easter Bunny, aka Tribal Elder Steve
Bobb Sr., during the Tribe’s annual Easter egg hunt held at Tribal Housing on Saturday, March 26.
Early Easter
After climbing a rock wall,
Kalea Liebelt, 4, grabs an egg
during the Tribe’s annual Easter
egg hunt held at Tribal Housing
on Saturday, March 26.
More photos on page 13.
Photos by Michelle Alaimo
See APPEAL
continued on page 4
Tribal Elder Richard Ray kept on trucking through his life
Tribal Elder Richard
“Mushy” Ray,
left, listens as
his wife, Kathryn
Ray, right, talks
about him during a
Celebration of Life
held at the Elders
Activity Center on
Saturday, March, 5.
Photo by Michelle Alaimo
By Brent Merrill
Smoke Signals staff writer
W
hen a celebra-
tion of life is
held before you
walk on, you know you
have lived a good life.
In the words of Grand Ronde
Tribal Elder Richard “Mushy” Ray,
“I’m on a different path.”
Fellow Tribal Elders thought
enough of Ray’s good life so far that
they held a celebration gathering at
the Elders Activity Center in Grand
Ronde on Saturday, March 5, and
he says it was “too much.”
“It was too nice,” says
Ray from a hospital bed
in the living room of his
Willamina home. He was
surrounded by his wife of 27 years,
Kathryn, and his sister-in-law, Star
Thomas, and dear family friend
See ELDER FEATURE
continued on page 13