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FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2003

"On June 10, 1996, Elouise Cobell, former treasurer of the Blackfeet Tribe, filed litigation for the two-fold purpose of forcing the government to account for the billions lost and to permanently reform the system. Judge Royce Lamberth ruled on Dec. 21, 1999, that the secretaries ofthe Interior and Treasury had breached their trust obligations to the American Indians, citing their conduct as 'fiscal and governmental irresponsibility in its purest form.'

Over the course of the trial, which has spanned two presidencies so far, both former Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt and current secretary Gale Norton have been held in contempt for various offenses. They include repeated delays in producing documents, destroying pertinent documents, false testimony and bureaucratic retribution.

The government has been court-ordered to reform the system, but the date for phase two of the trial forcing accountability has yet to be determined.

This shameful display from our government continues on with the Bush Administration, which is now seeking to enact legislation in order to pay for the private attorneys retained by U.S. officials who inflicted these crimes and aided in committing these acts of fraud. So not only are the trustees dodging accountability, they are attempting to carjack U.S. taxpayers, including the American Indians they already owe, by taking their money and utilizing it to pay for fraudulent officials."

Get the Story:
Bill Wetzel: Federal government denied reservations their prosperity (The Arizona Daily Wildcat 2/28)

Relevant Links:
Indian Trust, Department of Interior - http://www.doi.gov/indiantrust
Indian Trust: Cobell v. Norton - http://www.indiantrust.com
Trust Reform, NCAI - http://www.ncai.org/main/pages/
issues/other_issues/trust_reform.asp

Related Stories:
Norton rebuffs talk of settlement (2/27)
Spending bill keeps provisions affecting Cobell (02/14)
Senate panel eager to confirm Swimmer as trustee (02/13)
Norton says trust forced 'tough choices' in budget (02/12)
Budget not kind to Indian Country (2/10)
Trust programs see historic increase (2/4)
Court asked to reject Bush accounting plan (02/03)
Norton's plan faces court scrutiny (1/27)
Tribes debate response to trust reform plans (01/13)
Standards guide reform effort (1/8)
What happened to all the land? (1/8)
Congressman accuses Norton of 'stealth' moves (1/8)
Sioux chairman calls BIA talks a 'sham' (1/8)
Cobell trust reform plans filed (1/7)
Norton to fight IIM accounting (1/7)
Norton won't account for assets (1/6)
McCaleb learned about trust 'on the job' (12/23)
Lamberth slams claimed accounting (12/23)
Edwards: Slonaker changed mind on accounts (12/23)
McCaleb challenges trust accounting claims (12/19)