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MARCH 5, 2001

Mona Infield just might be Indian Country own unique version of Linda Tripp, the former government employee exiled to home duty for revealing the controversial inner doings of the Clinton administration.

Except Infield, a 42-year-old member of the Potawatomi Nation of Oklahoma, is still collecting an $80,000 a year paycheck despite not having stepped into her Bureau of Indian Affairs office in Albuquerque, New Mexico, for a year. Infield was a computer analyst who criticized the government's attempts at reforming the historically mismanaged trust fund accounting system.

She also criticized the move of the BIA's record system from Albuquerque to Virginia, saying it would damage sensitive trust fund data. Soon after, she and the plaintiffs in the billion dollar trust fund lawsuit allege top BIA officials retaliated against her by exiling her to her home.

Infield admits she didn't want to move to Virginia. The Interior Department says Infield was offered a wide variety of options but has not taken any of them. Infield says of two offers, one was below her training level and another was unsatisfactory.

Get the Story:
BIA Staffer at Home 1-Year After Testimony (The Albuquerque Journal 3/5)

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Ex-employee says harassment started at top (Tribal Law 2/15)
Intimidation alleged at Interior (Tribal Law 2/14)
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Trust fund decision blasted (Tribal Law 1/25)
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US: Trust reform project behind schedule (Tribal Law 09/19)
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COMMENTARY: The Trust Fund (The Talking Circle 09/07)
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