Michigan Indian

DOJ OIG Report on the Firing of the US Attorneys

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Should be compelling reading.

Here.

MSNBC coverage:

WASHINGTON – A new Justice Department report concludes that politics illegally influenced the hiring of career prosecutors and immigration judges, and largely lays the blame on top aides to former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.

Monday’s report singles out the department’s former White House liaison, Monica Goodling, for violating federal law and Justice Department policy by discriminating against job applicants who weren’t Republican or conservative loyalists.

Continue reading →

Michigan Court of Appeals Ruling in ICWA Case

bnewland2 Comments

We are told that the following report contains numerous inaccuracies, so please take the description of the case with a grain of salt. The majority opinion is here. The concurring/dissenting opinion is here.

From MIRS:

Federal Law Keeps Indian Mother, Baby Together

A Native American mother with a history of dating abusive men will be allowed to keep her newborn daughter, despite the cries of state social workers that a reunification could put the baby in physical and emotional danger.

The Court of Appeals ruled today that [Mother] should be given custody of 11-month-old [Daughter] based on a strict federal law the stresses the preservation of Indian households.

A ruling signed by appellate judges William WHITBECK and Jane MARKEY reverses a lower court ruling by saying that social workers didn’t do everything it could have under the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) to keep the family together. Continue reading →

Saginaw Chippewa Repeals Union Ban

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

From the Morning Sun (H/T Sharon):

The Saginaw Chippewa Tribe has repealed the law that essentially outlawed unions among Tribal employees.

“The Tribal Council took this step because it found that it was in the best interests of the Tribe to withdraw its ordinance to accommodate other important interests and relationships,” according to a statement issued by the Tribal Council. “It also makes no sense to engage in expensive litigation over the ordinance when our employees have shown no interest in a union.”

Continue reading →

NYTs: McCain and Indian Gaming Ties

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Three of the top ten gaming donors to McCain are tribal (here).

The main article from the NYTs:

Senator John McCain was on a roll. In a room reserved for high-stakes gamblers at the Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut, he tossed $100 chips around a hot craps table. When the marathon session ended around 2:30 a.m., the Arizona senator and his entourage emerged with thousands of dollars in winnings.

A lifelong gambler, Mr. McCain takes risks, both on and off the craps table. He was throwing dice that night not long after his failed 2000 presidential bid, in which he was skewered by the Republican Party’s evangelical base, opponents of gambling. Mr. McCain was betting at a casino he oversaw as a member of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, and he was doing so with the lobbyist who represents that casino, according to three associates of Mr. McCain.

Continue reading →

New GTB Chairman Derek Bailey

Matthew L.M. Fletcher3 Comments

From Indianz:
Voters of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians of Michigan elected Derek Bailey as chairman on Wednesday.

Bailey defeated incumbent chairman Robert Kewaygoshkum in a second matchup that was ordered by the tribal court. He won by 70 votes, after losing by 23 votes in a disputed election in May. At 35, Bailey will be the youngest person to serve as chair. The term lasts four years.

Get the Story:
Challenger elected tribal chairperson (The Traverse City Record-Eagle 9/26)

Tribal Court Decision:
Bailey v. GTB Election Board (August 8, 2008)

Written Testimony in SCIA Hearing on Burt Lake etc. Federal Recognition Bills

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

From SCIA:

Witnesses

THE HONORABLE TIMOTHY M. KAINE
Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia, Richmond, VA

THE HONORABLE JIM WEBB
United States Senate, Washington, DC

THE HONORABLE JAMES P. MORAN
United States Congressman

Panel 1
MR. LEE FLEMING
Director, Office of Federal Acknowledgment, U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington, DC

THE HONORABLE ANNE TUCKER
Chairwoman, Muscogee Nation of Florida, Bruce, FL

THE HONORABLE JOHN SINCLAIR
President, Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians of Montana, Great Falls, MT

THE HONORABLE RON YOB
Chairman, Grand River Bands of Ottawa Indians, Grand Rapids, MI

DR. HELEN C. ROUNTREE
Professor Emeritus, Old Dominion University, Hampton, VA

GTB Election Today

Matthew L.M. Fletcher2 Comments

Ugghhh. I wish we just had one election, instead of two or more every time….

From the Record-Eagle (H/T Indianz):

PESHAWBESTOWN — Members of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians will have another shot at selecting a tribal chairman today.

A tribal court in August ruled the band’s election board improperly censured candidate Derek Bailey shortly before the initial vote in May. A new election was ordered, and polls will be open today from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. in Peshawbestown, East Jordan, Traverse City and Benzonia.

Bailey lost by 23 votes to two-term incumbent chairman Robert Kewaygoshkum in the regularly scheduled May 21 election. But Bailey challenged the results because the band’s election board issued an e-mail censuring him for using a tribal computer to visit his campaign Web site.

The mass e-mail was sent less than 24 hours before the election to all tribal gambling and government employees. A tribal appeals court eventually ruled the action was “far outside the scope of the authority granted to the election board under the Constitution.”

Bailey, who served as a tribal councilman before running for chairman, is pleased to see the new election.

Continue reading →

Utilities File Cert Petition in EPA Mercury Case

Matthew L.M. Fletcher1 Comment

Here is the cert petition.

And here and here are links to our previous post, with the D.C. Circuit’s opinion and other materials.

Grand River Band of Ottawas before the Senate Indian Affairs Committee

Matthew L.M. Fletcher4 Comments

The SCIA will hold a hearing Thursday on several recognition bills, including the Grand River Band recognition bill (H/T Indianz).

Here is testimony from Grand River from last year.

GR Press Editorial Against IGRA

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

The editors complain about everything, and then assert whole states and localities should be allowed to vote on whether Indian gaming can come to the community. But the first two comments on the website have powerful responses.

Here it is.