News Archive: April 5, 2007 Archives

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April 5, 2007
Artman hopes to address backlogs as head of BIA
With less than two years to make his mark, the new head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs said he would work to reduce backlogs at the beleaguered agency. Carl Artman, a member of the Oneida Nation, made his first...

Montana lawmaker presses for health care funding
Montana State Rep. Jonathan Windy Boy, a member of the Chippewa Cree Tribe, testified at a Senate Finance Committee field hearing on Wednesday. Windy Boy said funding for Indian health care should be a top priority for the government. "Many...

Northern Cheyenne Tribe honors Chief Little Wolf
The Northern Cheyenne Tribe gathered on Wednesday to honor Chief Little Wolf, who led his people back to their homeland in Montana in 1879. In 1877, the Northern Cheyenne were removed to Oklahoma. Facing intolerable conditions, Chief Little Wolf...

Man arrested for stealing artifacts at Tule River
A California man faces federal charges for allegedly removing more than 100 artifacts from the Tule River Reservation. Jarvis Hamill, 30, was staying at a home on the reservation when he allegedly took the items. A tribal member reported the...

Elderly Navajo couple missing for more than a week
An elderly Navajo couple from New Mexico have been missing for more than a week. Elmer Benallie, 73, and his wife Lucille, 69, were last seen on March 27. They were headed out to one of their cattle ranches near...

Pine Ridge drug ring leader sentenced to 34 years
Geraldine Blue Bird, the leader of a drug trafficking ring on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, was sentenced to 34 years in prison. Blue Bird, 51, distributed more than 16 kilos of cocaine on the reservation. She...

Yankton Sioux Tribe receives HUD, tribal grants
The Yankton Sioux Tribe of South Dakota has received two grants for housing and development projects. The tribe received a $500,927 Indian Block Grant Award from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The money will be used to refurbish...

Chat: Indian child welfare in Washington
Toni Lodge, the director of the NATIVE Project/NATIVE Health, participated in an Internet chat about the Indian Child Welfare Act for The Spokesman Review. Lodge sits on the Local Indian Child Welfare Advisory Board, which helps resolve child custody issues....

Pit River chairwoman seeks to regain powers
The chairwoman of the Pit River Tribe of California is trying to regain the powers that she lost last fall. Jessica Jim still holds the title of chairwoman but the council stripped her of several duties, citing financial mismanagement. One...

Chehalis Tribe signs $1.5M services deal with county
The Chehalis Tribe of Washington will pay Thurston County $1.6 million under a water services agreement. The tribe negotiated the deal to bring water to the proposed Great Wolf Lodge. The tribe acquired 43 acres in trust for the $100...

Man sentenced for shooting five people on reserve
A 27-year-old man was sentenced his life in prison for shooting five people on the Penticton Reserve in British Columbia. Dustin Paul was convicted by a jury last September of second-degree murder and attempted murder. He killed two people,...

Eastern Shawnee Tribe loses out-of-state bid
The Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma says a judge's move to throw out its land claim is not a setback. The tribe filed suit for 146 square miles in western Ohio. But some communities signed agreements to allow the tribe...

Ousted Hopi chairman to challenge removal
Ben Nuvamsa, the ousted chairman of the Hopi Tribe of Arizona, is trying to get his job back. Nuvamsa was removed by the tribal council after less than a month as chairman. At issue was whether he satisfied the residency...

Judge throws out royalty underpayment verdict
A federal judge in Colorado has overturned a jury verdict in a controversial royalty underpayment case. Bobby L. Maxwell, a former auditor at the Minerals Management Service, alleged that Kerr-McGee Corporation cheated the government out of millions of dollars in...

Yellow Bird: Women of color share their views
"As Herald readers know, there are comparatively few people of color in the Red River Valley. So, during Women of Color Week - March 26-30 - when I helped moderate a panel of such women, it was a good...

Norton associate faces charges in Abramoff scandal
Italia Federici, an associate of former Interior secretary Gale Norton, faces up to five charges in connection with the Jack Abramoff scandal. Federici worked on Norton's failed U.S. Senate campaign in the 1990s. She then helped Norton create the Council...

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