Indianz.Com News Archive: April 20, 2006 Archives

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April 20, 2006
Group's list inflates off-reservation gaming proposals
A casino watchdog group is circulating a list of what it says are dozens of off-reservation gaming applications in California but some of the items are unrelated to gaming or have yet to be submitted for federal review. According to...

Dig uncovers more of Pueblo site in Santa Fe
Archaeologists have uncovered more structures at an ancient Pueblo village in downtown Santa Fe. The structure appears to be a kiva, a religious building, The Santa Fe New Mexican reported. Archaeologists are keeping quiet about the latest discovery pending consultation...

Brothers charged with slaying of Navy SEAL man
The Fort Peck Tribe has laid murder and complicity to murder charges against two brothers for the stabbing death of Michael Bell, a Navy SEAL who was visiting the reservation before his mission to Iraq. Gerald Littlehead Jr., 23,...

Navajo Nation council tables record sharing bill
The Navajo Nation Council voted 44-9 to table a bill that would enable the sharing of driving records with the states of New Mexico, Arizona and Utah. Supporters say the tribe should share drunk-driving convictions in tribal court with the...

Cover-up alleged over latest suicide at BIA school
Students and parents at Navajo Prep, a Bureau of Indian Affairs school, are raising concerns about a cover-up of student suicides. A 16-year-old female student was found dead at the school on Monday. It was the second student suicide in...

Aquinnah Wampanoag Tribe looks to harness wind
The Aquinnah Wampanoag Tribe of Massachusetts is conducting a feasibility study on wind power. With the help of a $50,000 grant from the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, the tribe is building a 150-foot meteorological tower to collect data over a six-...

Meth called modern-day enemy to Navajo Nation
Methamphetamine has become an even bigger problem on the Navajo Nation than alcohol, police on the largest reservation in the U.S. say. The tribe has made meth a priority by criminalizing the drug and increasing penalties. But the drug is...

Murder charge laid for meth lab blast on tribal land
A 28-year-old man was charged with first-degree murder in connection with a fire inside a meth lab on Absentee Shawnee tribal land in Oklahoma. The January 18, 2003, fire occurred inside a trailer that was being used as a meth...

Oglala Sioux police officer still recovering after crash
An officer for the Oglala Sioux Tribe of South Dakota has been undergoing physical therapy after a March 6 accident on the Pine Ridge Reservation. Howard Pretends Eagle, 24, was on patrol when his police vehicle overturned. He suffered multiple...

Leader of alleged Cherokee tribe on trial for fraud
The self-proclaimed chief of the Southern Cherokee Nation is on trial on 41 counts of conspiracy, tax evasion, wire fraud and money laundering. Rodger D. Griggs, who calls himself Chief Obobaway, is accused of defrauding investors of money. But testifying...

Indian Land Tenure Foundation discusses land issues
The Indian Land Tenure Foundation screened "American Indian Homelands: Matters of Truth, Honor and Dignity-Immemorial," a film about the history of federal Indian land policy, at the University of Minnesota. The film describes the problems Indian people face in managing...

Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe, city in water dispute
The Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe and the city of Fernley, Nevada, are battling over water usage on the Truckee River. The tribe, the city, the federal government and other parties have been negotiating for several years. The tribe is advocating...

Editorial: Tribe relying on 'myth' in water fight
"One of the myths frequently hurled around in debates about water is the most "efficient" way to move this life-sustaining commodity from place to place is by putting it in a pipeline. The Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe is relying upon...

Governor pledges investigation of Ramapough shooting
New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine (D) met privately with leaders of the Ramapough Lenape Indian Nation and promised a thorough investigation into the fatal shooting of a tribal member by a state park police officer. Chief Anthony Van Dunk...

Bill supports allotments for Alaska Native veterans
The Alaska House of Representatives voted 38-2 to support efforts in Congress to reopen the allotment process for Alaska Native veterans. The Native Allotment Act of 1906 expired in 1971 with the passage of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act....

Sen. Coburn expects seven lawmakers to go to jail
Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Oklahoma), a member of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, expects seven lawmakers to go to jail over their role in the Jack Abramoff corruption scandal. Coburn said six members of the House and one member of the...

WSJ: Ralph Reed may be first Abramoff casualty
The Wall Street Journal looks at the impact the Jack Abramoff scandal has had on Ralph Reed, the conservative Christian activist who is running for lieutenant governor of Georgia. Reed was considered the front-runner until e-mails released by the Senate...

Cobell: Settle Indian trust fund case for billions
"For Indians, the good news about this is that some lawmakers in Washington are beginning to care about what happened to both the money in Iraq and the money that was supposed to be held in trust by the U.S....

Oklahoma delays emergency tobacco tax rule
The state of Oklahoma is waiting until May 1 to enforce an emergency tobacco tax rule. The rule was adopted in February to prevent tobacco stores licensed by tribes from selling cigarettes with cheaper tax stamps. Stores run directly by...

Cayuga Nation files response brief on land claim
The Cayuga Nation of New York and the Seneca-Cayuga Tribe of Oklahoma filed their response brief to the U.S. Supreme Court earlier this month. The tribes are asking the court to review their 64,000-acre land claim. They say the 2nd...

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