White Earth Land Settlement Act

Minnesota COA Affirms Enforcement of Tribal Court Judgment in White Earth Fraud Case

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the unpublished opinion in United States ex rel. Auginaush v. Medure:

US ex rel Auginaush v Medure

An excerpt:

The tribal court adopted the arbitration transcript as the official record of its proceeding. This transcript included testimony from Medure. In August 2009 the tribal court ruled that the 1992 contract was null and void. In November 2010 the tribal court issued an order and judgment in favor of the band awarding all amounts paid under the contract, amounting to more than $18.5 million with interest accruing at the daily rate of $1,669.12.

We posted about this case in 2009.

Minnesota Court Recognizes Tribal Court Judgment of $19 Million against Gaming World International

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the news coverage.

We posted about the tribal court decision here.

White Earth Band Awarded Millions in Tribal Court Dispute with Former Chair and Gaming Management Co.

Matthew L.M. Fletcher4 Comments

From the Bemidji Pioneer:

An $18,562,767.45 money judgment was recently awarded to the White Earth Band of Chippewa against Angelo Medure and Gaming World International, Ltd. (GWI).

The award culminates a 14-year struggle of the people of White Earth to recover illegal profit distributions made to Medure and Gaming World International. The legal action began in White Earth Tribal Court and then removed by GWI and Medure to Federal Court and then remanded back to Tribal Court by the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Medure was found to have conspired with former White Earth Chairman Darrell “Chip” Wadena to deprive the people of White Earth the benefits of the White Earth Land Settlement Act (WELSA). Although agreement provisions between GWI and Wadena required that Medure provide management services for the construction, development and operation of the Shooting Star Casino, GWI had no employees at the Shooting Star Casino at any time. In spite of having no employees at Shooting Star Casino, GWI and Medure were paid $10,153,772.61 in profit distributions. The management agreement required GWI to pay back the White Earth Land Settlement Act (WELSA) funds before any profit distributions were made to GWI.

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