Judge denies tribal jurisdiction over Indian descendant (December 8, 2004)

Despite the U.S. Supreme Court's holding that tribes have sovereignty over all Indians, a federal judge has denied a Washington tribe criminal jurisdiction over a man who is Indian by blood but not enrolled in a tribe. This past April,...

Gates Foundation awards grant for Indian education (December 8, 2004)

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has awarded a $6.1 million grant to improve graduation and college attendance rates among Native students in Washington. Antioch University will use the money to open seven Early College High Schools in the state...

Rival factions tie up Cheyenne-Arapaho business (December 8, 2004)

Rival factions of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes have held up tribal business for much of the year but the situation isn't likely to improve. Last week, a tribal judge ordered the business committee to meet. But council member Darrel...

Campbell making plans for private life again (December 8, 2004)

Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell (R-Colorado), a member of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe of Montana, is retiring this month but he is already making plans for his private life. Campbell has signed a deal to help design a line of...

Shakopee Tribe plans to build sewage treatment plant (December 8, 2004)

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community of Minnesota plans to build a sewage treatment plant that will serve the reservation. The tribe says the plant will use environmentally friendly technology that will create no odors or noise. The facility will be...

Third man jailed for Indian gang-related shooting (December 8, 2004)

Police have arrested a third man wanted for a gang-related shooting at an Indian housing complex in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Edison J. Mahkuk, 19, was picked up and jailed early Tuesday. He is one of three men facing charges for the...

Diabetes an epidemic among Manitoba Natives (December 8, 2004)

Manitoba's Health Department released a plan on Tuesday aimed at combating high rates of diabetes among Natives in the province. Health Minister Tim Sale says diabetes was unheard of a generation ago. Now he says it has reached epidemic levels...

Canadian court approves class action for school abuse (December 8, 2004)

An appeal court in Ontario, Canada, has certified a class action lawsuit on behalf of 800 former students of a Native residential school. The suit was filed on behalf of Natives who say they suffered physical, sexual and mental abuse...

Criminal charges laid against ex-Kickapoo leaders (December 8, 2004)

A criminal complaint against two men who controlled the Kickapoo Tribe of Texas until being ousted from power two years ago was unsealed on Tuesday. Raul Garza, former chairman, and Isidro Garza, the tribe's former manager, are accused of using...

Tribal partnership to build another hotel (December 8, 2004)

A partnership of three tribes plans to build a $53 million hotel in Sacramento, California. The San Manuel Band of Mission Indians of California, the Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians from California and the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin have formed...

Washington tribes worried about new salmon plan (December 8, 2004)

Two Washington with treaty rights are worried about the Bush administration's proposal to reduce the critical habitat for salmon in the Pacific Northwest by 80 percent. The Stillaguamish Tribe says the Stillaguamish River would be safe because timber companies are...

Inhofe asked to stop gaming on newly acquired lands (December 8, 2004)

Three Connecticut towns are asking Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Oklahoma) to stop tribes from opening gaming facilities on newly acquired trust lands. The leaders of North Stonington, Ledyard and Preston say the land-into-trust process is out of control. They say tribes...

Elderly Navajo woman believed to be killed by dogs (December 8, 2004)

An elderly Navajo woman who lived alone is believed to have been killed by dogs or coyotes. Eloise Nez, 67, was found mauled to death outside her home in a remote area outside of Shiprock, New Mexico. An autopsy is...

Top two members on Civil Rights Commission resign (December 8, 2004)

The top two members on the U.S. Civil Rights Commission resigned on Tuesday after President Bush named their replacements. Chairwoman Mary Frances Berry, an independent, ran the agency for more than two decades. She was a critic of the Bush...

Top Interior official resigns from Bush administration (December 8, 2004)

A top Interior Department official whose handling of the Indian trust tainted his controversial tenure in Washington, D.C., announced his resignation on Tuesday. After three years as the department's deputy secretary, the number two position, J. Steven Griles told President...

Griles blames controversies on Bush opponents (December 8, 2004)

Outgoing Deputy Interior Secretary J. Steven Griles is blaming the controversy he encountered during the past three years on opponents of President Bush. Griles, who announced his resignation yesterday, was a frequent target of environmental groups. They said his past...

Change in Alaska Native culture leads to cancers (December 8, 2004)

With cancer rates among Alaska Natives increasing, health experts are looking for ways to combat a once-rare disease. Tobacco use, high among Alaska Natives, is seen as a major factor. Tobacco-related cancers, such as lung cancer, account for one-third of...

Alaska Native village deals with major water crisis (December 8, 2004)

A recent storm that has caused as much as $11 million in damage to coastal communities in western Alaska has hit the Yupi'k village of Nunam Iqua particularly hard. Flooding from the October storm polluted the village's water supply. Then,...

Two hunting accidents rile San Carlos Apache Tribe (December 8, 2004)

Two separate hunting accidents involving young tribal members have officials with the San Carlos Apache Tribe of Arizona concerned. On Sunday, a 24-year-old tribal member mistook his father for an elk and fatally shot him. A similar accident involving two...

Former employees allege bias at Leech Lake Tribe (December 8, 2004)

Eleven former employees of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe have filed suit against the Minnesota tribe. The former employees of the tribe's Legal Department allege they were wrongfully terminated after the June 8 election. They say their civil rights...

Gila River Tribe one of DC's biggest lobbyists (December 8, 2004)

The Gila River Indian Community of Arizona was one of Washington, D.C., biggest lobbyists for the first half of 2004, The Hill newspaper reports. The tribe gave more than $820,000 to the firm of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld...