News Archive: January 25, 2007 Archives

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January 25, 2007
State of Indian Nations broadcast on CSPAN3
The 5th annual State of Indian Nations address will be broadcast on C-SPAN3 at noon today. Joe Garcia, the president of the National Congress of American Indians, will deliver the speech. It takes places at the National Press Club in...

Fort Peck woman pleads guilty to son's murder
A woman from the Fort Peck Reservation in Montana pleaded guilty to second-degree murder for the death of her 11-month-old son. Danelle Ferguson admitted to shaking her son, Andrew, who was one month shy of his first birthday. Her other...

Blackfeet Nation receives threatening letter
The Blackfeet Nation of Montana shut down its tribal complex on Monday after receiving a threatening letter that contained some unknown substances. The letter started with the words "Catch me if you can, please," and contained a white powder substance...

Navajo soldier wins discharge from Marines
In a reversal of a prior decision, a 19-year-old member of the Navajo Nation has been granted conscientious-objector status. Ronnie Tallman, of Tuba City, Arizona, sought a discharge from the Marines after he discovered he was a hand trembler,...

Letter: Navajo president betrays his people
"We read, hear and watch stories of a member of a Native American tribe turning in his people for selfish gain. In the end, the turncoat is usually turned against himself by the people he tries to impress, and also...

Cherokee Nation donates $1.5M to OU Medicine
The Cherokee Nation donated $1.5 million to University of Oklahoma College of Medicine to establish a diabetes and cancer clinic. The clinic will focus on research, prevention, patient care, and faculty and staff development. Diabetes and cancer rates are...

Plans for Indian center in Oklahoma City unveiled
Plans for a $135 million Indian center in Oklahoma City were approved on Wednesday. The American Indian Cultural Center is being designed by Ralph Appelbaum Associates. It would feature the stories of Oklahoma's federally recognized tribes, including their removal...

Oil company owes million for underpaid royalties
A federal jury in Colorado said an oil company cheated the American public out of $7.5 million in royalties in a case the Interior Department had claimed was meritless. The jury agreed with a former Minerals Management Service auditor who...

Man indicted for deaths in drug-related car crash
A New Mexico man was indicted in Colorado for a car crash on the Southern Ute Reservation that claimed the lives of a woman and her granddaughter. Jamie L. Wood faces two counts of vehicular homicide. On November 28, 2006,...

Navajo Nation Council approves sales tax hike
The Navajo Nation Council approved a 1 percent increase in the tribe's sales tax. The tax rate is currently 3 percent. By raising it to 4 percent, the tribe hopes to generate an additional $4 million in revenue. For the...

Hopi Tribe holds special election for chairman
Members of the Hopi Tribe of Arizona went to the polls on Wednesday to elect a new chairman. The special election was called due to the ouster of former chairman Ivan Sidney. He was removed by the tribal council for...

Hannahville Indian Community considers regional jail
The Hannahville Indian Community, a Potawatomi tribe from Michigan, is considering a proposal to open a regional jail. The tribe would work with six counties in the Upper Peninsula. A regional jail would help relieve overcrowding at the county facilities....

Aquinnah Wampanoag Tribe halts hatchery
The Aquinnah Wampanoag Tribe of Massachusetts has suspended its shellfish hatchery for the year. The Wampanoag Shellfish Hatchery Corporation operated the hatchery on the six acres of Menemsha Pond. But the director recently resigned and the corporation is undergoing...

Santa Ysabel Band partners with Cal State
The Santa Ysabel Band of Diegueño Indians signed a partnership with California State University San Marcos, the first of its kind for the college. The tribe and CSUSM will work to increase the number of tribal members in college. They...

Abramoff's old law firm defending Griles
J. Steven Griles, the former deputy secretary at the Interior Department who is facing charges for the Jack Abramoff scandal, has hired Abramoff's former law firm. Griles hired K&L Gates, previously known as Preston Gates Ellis. The firm was the...

Hog-doggers' on Seminole Reservation acquitted
A jury in Florida acquitted two men accused of staging "hog-dog" fights on the Seminole Reservation in Florida, the men's lawyer said on Wednesday. Arthur Parker and Don Matthews were charged with animal cruelty for arranging fights between dogs and...

Indian Affairs Committee business meeting
The Senate Indian Affairs Committee is meeting for the second time today. The committee will consider changes to its rules and a funding resolution for the 110th Congress. The meeting takes place at 9:30am in Room 485 of the Senate...

Indian plaintiffs lose trust fund ruling despite DOI delay
A group of Indian beneficiaries who waited more than 30 years for their trust fund payments aren't entitled to additional money, a federal appeals court ruled on Wednesday. In a unanimous decision, the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals agreed the...

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