After months in exile, Eugene Little Coyote received the largest amount of votes in the primary election September 30th on the reservation, in a outpouring of tribal support. Now he awaits the outcome of the November 4th general election. View his campaign video at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5_TIvnG5nU&fmt=18
On August 13th, 2008 in a trial by jury in the Northern Cheyenne Court, Eugene Little Coyote was found not guilty on trumped-up criminal mischief charges. The jury voted unanimously to exhonerate Little Coyote, who addressed the jury afterwards, thanking them for saving his faith in the Cheyenne People. The next task will be for the Department of the Interior and Bureau of Indian Affairs to acknowledge their mistake of illegially removing him from office.
Majel Russel resigns? Rumor has it that MAD MADjel (emphasis mine) resigned, quit, walked away from her job last friday. No, it’s not exactly newsworthy, you couldn’t even get Indian Country Today or Indianz.com to report on it, but for this blog’s purposes I thought it was at least worth mentioning.
Apparently, it wasn’t in her stars to be the Assistant Solicitor (a basement office with fewer windows), which was the position offered her shortly (3 minutes to be precise) before she stormed out and left the lights on.
The question that remains is where does that leave the Northern Cheyenne and the reckless erosion of sovereignty caused by Carl and MADjel? Georgie, it’s up to you to boldly go where no BIA Secretary has ever gone before. Carl and MADjel created this mess, but it’s on you to fix it. No need for magic wands, this is a simple fix that only requires a little bit of courage and common sense with a good conscience. For the sake of bloody sovereignty, we can at least expect that out of Georgie can’t we?
US Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs, Carl Artman has resigned his position as the national head BIA official. Attached is his resignation letter.
A significant part of the BIA’s mission is to support tribal self determination.
Carl Artman stated in his confirmation address to the Senate Commission of Indian Affairs that, (Tribes can best exercise their sovereignty through their judicial systems).
In late July 2007, the BIA recommended the conflicting Executive and Legislative Branches to resolve the internal matter of removal in the Tribe’s courts, citing a precedent.
In October 2007, the matter was taken before the Court and a ruling was made. It is especially important to note that the Tribe’s Constitutional Court has exclusive jurisdiction over tribal council enactments, and the Tribal Council’s sovereign immunity is waived to the Constitutional Court by tribal law of the Separation of Powers ordinance.
Later in October 2007, the BIA regional office recommended to the reaffirmed tribal president to appeal agency approvals of previous legislative actions declared unconstitutional.
In November 2007, the BIA rejected new legislative action taken without the lawful tribal president, honoring the Constitutional Court decision.
Then in late December 2007 the BIA does a complete turn-around in honoring the Court’s ruling, claiming they did not believe the Court had jurisdiction. The BIA physically deposes the lawful tribal president at gunpoint and arrests him to enforce their decision.
The BIA discloses in their decision to depose the tribal president that he can appeal to the Interior Board of Appeals. He does.
In early January 2008, the Interior Board of Indian Appeals orders a stay on the BIA’s decision to depose the tribal president during the appeal process.
A few days later, Artman assumes jurisdiction and takes the tribal president’s appeal away from the IBIA. Artman gives no reason or justification as to why.
In conjunction with taking the appeal, Artman, in a memo signed by Majel Russell, then preempts the IBIA order of stay and resumes the BIA decision to depose the tribal president, again without a reason or explanation as to why.
Now in March 2008 following a special election for the perceived vacancy of the tribal president, Artman then suspends the appeal stating it is BIA policy that elections make disputes “moot.” Artman arranges for a new administrative hearing on whether or not the elections render the appeal moot.
SUMMARY:
The Northern Cheyenne Tribe had settled this matter within its own jurisdiction, with its own sovereign institutions. After all, the BIA did recommend the Executive and Legislative Branches of government settle the dispute in the tribe’s courts. Then when the BIA didn’t care for the decision, the BIA invaded the tribe’s jurisdiction and damaged their self determination, disregarded and violated the tribe’s Constitutional Court and its court orders to remove the duly elected Tribal President. The BIA - not the Tribal Council - deposed the Tribal President, by armed force at that.
Then when he followed the appeals process receiving fair treatment from the IBIA, the Assistant Secretary Carl Artman himself intervened and reversed what the IBIA had ordered. This enabled the Tribal Council to also disregard and violate the Constitutional Court order so that they could conduct an illegal election to replace the tribal president. Now Artman is ready to dismiss the deposed tribal president’s appeal as moot (unnecessary) because of the election unless there is a justification why it shouldn’t be dismissed.
The BIA told the Tribe to resolve the matter in court, but ignored and violated the Tribe’s court, deposed the tribal president by armed force, took the president’s appeal away from a fair and impartial administrative court, then enabled illegal elections to replace him, and now the BIA wants to be given justification why they shouldn’t moot the appeal because of the election they engineered. It’s ironic that he is the lawful and duly elected President in the first place! There is no other word to describe the sum of the BIA’s role in all of this except for “travesty.”
One needs only to examine the BIA’s long history in “serving” tribes to foresee how this will result, particularly when you look at their non-existent efforts to correct their failure in trust management raised in the Cobell class action lawsuit.
Some of the most important issues that need to be addressed are a.) why the BIA, whose own mission is to support self determination, has committed such an offense against self determination; and b.) Why Artman, who stated in the most important speech of his career, that tribe’s can best exercise sovereignty through their judicial systems. Artman’s intent to moot the appeal will serve to cover up the BIA’s questioned actions. He nor the BIA will ever have to answer them, or be accountable for them. Unless we say something about it!
Carl Artman, Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs, has established a briefing schedule on the question of whether the February, 2008 election has rendered this matter moot.
Amicus Curiae briefs are due at the same time as the brief of the party they are supporting.
See Attachment:
This article is from the March 15th, 2008 edition of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribal Tribune on the illegal removal of Eugene Little Coyote, Northern Cheyenne Tribal President.
To All Interested Parties:
I am Eugene Little Coyote, the lawful and duly elected President of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe. On the evening of Dec. 28, 2007 a fully armed Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) police assault team broke into the administrative offices of the Little Wolf Capital Building in Lame Deer Montana to forcibly remove me at gunpoint from office, immediately jailing me for trespass. I had hand delivered a letter earlier that very afternoon to the regional head of BIA Law Enforcement Services, Matthew Pryor, stating that I would vacate the offices if there was a court order to do so – but no legal order or warrant was produced.
The BIA police were acting on a Dec. 27, 2007 decision of BIA Rocky Mountain Regional Director Edward Parisian to recognize vice-president Rick Wolfname as president, which disregarded and violated the binding Northern Cheyenne Tribal Constitutional Court Order that I was to resume my duties as the duly elected Tribal President after unconstitutional actions of the Tribal Council failed to remove me from office. Parisian’s decision arose from an appeal he recommended I make to his office to reverse BIA Agency Superintendent Marjorie Eagleman’s approvals of the unconstitutional Tribal Council actions (I did not appeal the Constitutional Court decision). Eagleman is the full sister of Tribal Council member Alberta Fisher who opposes me; something I have filed complaint on to Parisian’s office as a conflict of interest of Eagleman.
I quickly appealed Parisian’s decision to the Interior Board of Indian Appeals (IBIA), which they received on Dec. 31, 2007. On January 3, 2008 the IBIA Administrative Judge Deborah Luther issued an order stating federal regulations automatically stayed Parisian’s decision once an appeal is filed, and that Parisian’s decision to recognize a different president was without effect. Yet I was jailed a second time on Jan. 8, 2008 for “criminal mischief” regarding the Dec. 28, 2007 incident at my office. The arrest took place in my home in front of my wife and children.
Earlier on Jan. 8, 2008 Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs Carl Artman issued a notice that he was taking jurisdiction of my appeal away from the IBIA to hear the matter personally. On the same date Artman issued another notice, signed by a Majel Russell, making Parisian’s decision immediately effective, preempting the IBIA order.
Following my two arrests, I sought a temporary restraining order and injunction against the BIA’s decisions in Federal District Court. A hearing for the TRO petition was held on Jan. 11, 2008 but was not granted by Federal Judge Richard Cebull because he was required to give deference to the agency (BIA), also stating that I failed to meet the criteria for irreparable harm, among other things. However Cebull did state that he will convene an injunction hearing at a later date.
Currently I am unlawfully displaced from my office and am awaiting the injunction hearing to be scheduled, which according to my attorney Thomas Towe of Billings Montana could be withinthe next several weeks. I am advised that we have arrived at a juncture where the issue is bigger than just my fight for justice, and bigger than the Northern Cheyenne Tribe because its impact will affect all Tribal Sovereignty and Self Determination across Indian Country.
It is important to know that I have publicly stated the Tribal Council is not my enemy despite the dispute; it is the BIA that is the adversary because of its interference in our internal affairs. The sovereign Northern Cheyenne Tribe has an Indian Reorganization Act based Constitution with three distinct branches of government: Executive, Legislative and Judicial with a Separation of Powers and a Law & Order Code. The BIA’s decision and its use of force have interfered with our tribe’s Self-Determination by substituting the BIA’s interpretation of tribal law in place of our own.
And so I must raise alarm to all other sovereign tribal nations of this event, and apprise you all of the dangerous precedent that could be set with the BIA intentionally violating tribal law, undermining tribal court orders, due processes, deposing and jailing me to place someone of their preference to the Office of the NCT President. The BIA has usurped the tribe’s jurisdiction in its own legal dispute resolution process, substantially diminishing the tribe’s sovereignty. If this travesty is allowed to happen here on Northern Cheyenne, than it’s probable to happen again elsewhere in Indian Country.
Attached to this letter is supporting documentation to these events and legal issues. Please review them in detail to determine if your tribe or organization will be impacted by this case. If so, than you are invited and encouraged to submit a Brief of Amicus Curia to assist in the defense of Tribal Sovereignty and Self Determination against BIA interference and paternalistic control. I pray you and your tribe recognizes the importance of this cause. Your support is needed. Please submit your briefs to:
United States District Court
Judge Richard Cebull’s Chambers
James F. Battin Courthouse
316 North 26th Street
Billings MT 59101
I can be contacted through my attorney Thomas E. Towe, Esq. by phone at (406) 248-7337, and by mail at 2525 Sixth Ave North PO Box 30457 Billings MT 59107-0457. Address e-mail inquiries to my point of contact, Mr. Russell Brooks at benallybrooks@gmail.com. Thank you.
Respectfully,
Eugene Little Coyote, President
Northern Cheyenne Tribe
Attachments:
BIA Honor Constitutional Court Ruling
Constitutional Declatory Judgement
