Keweenaw Bay Indian Community

Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Now Hiring Assistant Tribal Attorney and Law Clerk

Sarah M Donnelly

Download PDF announcement for assistant attorney here.

Download PDF announcement for law clerk here.

Summary Judgment Briefs in Turunen v. Michigan DNR — Treaty Right to Farm Pigs

Matthew L.M. Fletcher1 Comment

Here are the materials in Turunen v. Michigan Department of Natural Resources (W.D. Mich.):

39 MDNR Motion for Summary J

42 Turunen Response

47 MDNR Reply

The claim survived an earlier motion to dismiss here.

Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Attorney Job Posting

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here:

A Tribal Attorney position was posted this morning at KBIC.  Please feel free to forward this opportunity.

 

http://www.kbic-nsn.gov/content/personnel

http://www.kbic-nsn.gov/sites/default/files/open/Attorney%203-2015.pdf

Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Wolf Management Plan

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here.

From 2013.

An excerpt:

The purpose of this plan is to provide a course of action that will ensure the long-term survival of a self-sustaining, wild gray wolf (Canis lupus) population in the 1842 ceded territory in the western Upper Peninsula of Michigan. It is written to encourage cooperation among agencies, communities, private and corporate landowners, special interest groups, and all Michigan residents. The Plan conforms to the provisions of the Federal Eastern Timber Wolf Recovery Plan, which includes Michigan (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 1992), Michigan Gray Wolf Recovery and Management Plan (Michigan Department of Natural Resources 1997), and the Michigan Wolf Management Plan (Michigan Department of Natural Resources 2008).

1842 Ojibwe Treaty Meeting at Lac Vieux Desert

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Participants: Lac Vieux Desert, Lac du Flambeau, Mole Lake, St. Croix, Red Cliff, Fond du Lac, Keweenaw Bay, Bad River, Lac Courte Oreilles

Here:

1842 Ojibwe Treaty Meeting 2 1842 Ojibwe Treaty Meeting 3 1842 Ojibwe Treaty Meeting 4 1842 Ojibwe Treaty Meeting 5 1842 Ojibwe Treaty Meeting

Casino, Marijuana, and Same-Sex Marriage News from Keweenaw Bay Indian Community

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is “KBIC votes down new casino; okays legal pot, same-sex marriage.”

News Update in KBIC Judicial Crisis — Utilities Shut Off

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the news article, “KBIC moves tribal court.”

Michigan Court of Appeals Affirms Mining and Groundwater Discharge Permits at Eagle Mine

Kate Fort

Mining Permit decision here.

This case reflects the attempt to balance the potentially conflicting imperatives of exploiting a great economic opportunity and protecting the environment, natural resources, and public health. At issue is appellee Kennecott Eagle’s proposal to develop an underground mine to extract nickel and copper from the sulfide ores beneath the headwaters of the Salmon Trout River in the Yellow Dog Plains in Marquette County.

Groundwater Discharge permit decision here.

The court found the balance on the side of the underground mine. The state decision makers have managed to find at least three alternative grounds for not considering Eagle Rock a place of worship.

News article here.

Keweenaw Bay Judicial Crisis

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the new report, “Judges suspended by Tribal Council following KBIC civil lawsuit hearing.”

Note that the tribal judicial code treats the judiciary as a branch of government on par with the legislative and executive branches.