Panel takes up Chukchansi disnerollment and leadership dispute

Monday, March 4, 2013  

A disenrollment and leadership dispute within the Picayune Rancheria of the Chukchansi Indians of California was the subject of a public forum last week.

In the 1980s, only about 30 people were enrolled in the tribe, according to a June 2011 article from New Scientist. Membership rose to more than 1,000 after the tribe opened a casino.

The tribe has since removed more than half of the people from the rolls. That's sparked another disagreement over who runs the tribe, a dispute that has occasionally turned violent.

“When we were in that building with those burning logs that were thrown in at us, I didn’t know if we were going to make it out of that building,” Dora Jones, a former council member who was involved in a violent clash a year ago, said at the forum, The Collegian reported.

Local police showed up at a tribal meeting last week as a precaution.

Get the Story:
Chukchansi dispute reviewed (The Collegian 3/4)

Leadership dispute within Chukchansi Tribe draws local police (2/27)