Oneida Nation tax dispute headed to appeals court (September 8, 2006)

Another major decision on the Oneida Nation's sovereignty is pending in court. A federal judge ruled that the tribe's sovereign immunity protects it from lawsuits for failing to pay property taxes. The dispute is now headed to the 2nd Circuit...

Muscogee Creek Nation asserts control over river (September 8, 2006)

The Muscogee Creek Nation of Oklahoma is asserting control over 100 miles of the Arkansas River. The Creeks signed an 1852 treaty that promised them the river. The Cherokee Nation and the Chickasaw Nation also own parts of the...

Standing Rock Sioux Tribe to use grant to fight suicide (September 8, 2006)

The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe is using a $400,000 federal grant to combat suicide. The money is coming from the Department of Health and Human Services. It will help fund a mental health outreach program. The tribe has experienced a...

School superintendent blasts response to lockdown (September 8, 2006)

The media and the office of Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley Jr. overreacted to the lockdown of a school on the Navajo Nation, the local superintendent said. Ganado Unified School District Superintendent Deborah Jackson-Dennison said the Ganado High School...

Navajo family to sue city for police shooting (September 8, 2006)

The family of a Navajo man who was fatally shot by a police officer in Farmington, New Mexico, plan to sue the city. Clint John, 21, was shot four times in a Wal-Mart parking lot. Police were responding to a...

Aroostook Band closes clinic and lays off employees (September 8, 2006)

The Aroostook Band of Micmacs in Maine abruptly shut down its health clinic and laid off about 40 employees this week. The tribe cited financial difficulties. But some of the 1,000 members blame Chief William Phillips for mismanagement. Phillips is...

Mashantucket Pequot Museum seeks higher level (September 8, 2006)

The Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center will be going to a "higher level," incoming executive director Kimberly Hatcher-White tells The Norwich Bulletin. Hatcher-White is taking over at the end of the month. She replaces Theresa Bell, a tribal member...

Pine Ridge man sentenced for off-reservation beating (September 8, 2006)

A man from the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota was sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in a beating incident off the reservation. Dakota Garnier, 20, pleaded guilty to one count of rioting. Charges of attempted...

Interior rejects Skull Valley nuclear waste dump (September 8, 2006)

The Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Bureau of Land Management have rejected a proposed nuclear waste dump on the Skull Valley Goshute Reservation in Utah. The BIA said it couldn't approve an agreement for the site because the tribe...

Connecticut tribes contacted about artifact find (September 8, 2006)

The state of Connecticut is working with two tribes to decide what to do about the discovery of more than 8,800 artifacts. The artifacts were found at the site of a major development in Norwich. The Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation...

Towns complain about land-into-trust proposal (September 8, 2006)

Three Connecticut towns say the Bureau of Indian Affairs is not soliciting their input on proposed land-into-trust regulations. The leaders of Ledyard, North Stonington and Preston said the draft of the rules has been provided to tribes but not to...

Passamaquoddy Tribe ousts embattled governor (September 8, 2006)

Members of the Passamaquoddy Tribe of Maine ousted embattled Governor Robert L. Newell in the election at Indian Township. Newell lost by more than 100 votes. He was defeated by William J. Nicholas, who takes over the job October 1....

Seneca man in New York eludes police for months (September 8, 2006)

A Seneca man from New York has eluded police for five months, leaving a trail of violence as he moves across the state. Ralph J. Phillips, also known as Bucky, escaped from a county jail on April 2. The...

Osage Nation opens first congressional session (September 8, 2006)

The first session of the new Osage Nation Congress began this week. The Congress was created when the tribe reorganized its government. Federal legislation was needed to put the Osages in control of their own affairs. Twelve people are...

Haliwa-Saponi Tribe receives grant from HUD (September 8, 2006)

The Haliwa-Saponi Tribe of North Carolina received a $772,000 grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The money will be used for youth services, counseling, education and other activities. The tribe has received HUD grants for the past...

Harjo: Urban Indian health funding still at risk (September 8, 2006)

"When President Bush sent Congress his proposed budget for fiscal year 2007 at the beginning of this calendar year, the urban Indian health program was targeted for elimination. The administration began taking steps to close the 34 health centers all...