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JUNE 15, 2000

A couple who owns a smoke shop that falls within Nez Perce reservation land may sue the city of Orofino over an essay published by a city administrator critical of the couple and the tribe.

Dough Marsh and his wife Lorna Marsh, a member of the Nez Perce tribe, have filed a tort claim against the city, Clearwater County, and the North Central Idaho Jurisdictional Alliance, a coalition of 21 local governments and/or taxing districts.

Orofino City Administrator Rick Laam wrote a controversial essay which was adopted by the Alliance. The essay predicted violence if the Nez Perce tribe didn't stop imposing their laws on non-Indians on fee land within the reservation. The essay specificaly mentioned the Marsh's smoke shop.

The Marsh's smoke shop is on fee land, but the couple applied for the land to be brought back into trust. The city opposes the move.

The couple are seeking an undetermined amount of money for damage caused by slander, $50,000 for loss of mental, emotional and physical well-being by the owners, their employees, customers and tourists, and $50,000 in punitive damages.

The Alliance was formed in 1996 to fight the Nez Perce tribe's laws imposed on non-members. The group claims it is not an anti-Indian group.

Get the Story:
Smoke shop may sue over essay (The Spokesman Review 6/15)

Relevant Links:
North Central Idaho Jurisdictional Alliance www.camasnet.com/~stingray/ncija