"This may be the equivalent of the old phrase of trying to squeeze blood out of a rock.

The Golden Hill Paugussetts, a state Indian tribe that has failed twice to secure federal recognition, has rekindled its land claims against property owners in at least three communities in the region � Bridgeport, Trumbull and Orange.

The group recently filed documents in federal court seeking to charge property owners decades of back rent because, it claims, deals to give the lands to settlers violated a 1790 law that Congress must approve all land deals with tribes.

The Trumbull-based Paugussetts claim they have been "denied the use and enjoyment of any rental income and profits rightfully due to it from the land." The amended lawsuit seeks damages representing the fair rent value of the land. When the Paugussetts first filed land claims back in the 1990s it led to complex and messy legal entanglements for individual property owners in these communities. We certainly hope that will not be the case again."

Get the Story:
Editorial: Paugussett claims must be rejected (The Connecticut Post 7/21)

Relevant Links:
Golden Hill Paugussett Tribe - http://paugussett.itgo.com
Friends of the Golden Hill Paugussett Tribe - http://www.paugussetts.com

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