We have the sections below that are breaking new ground in disenrollment case law:
(1) P. 2, fn. 2. The Ninth Circuit understands that membership disputes "have been proliferating in recent years, largely driven by the advent of Indian gaming." The tide may be changing.
(2) The Ninth Circuit for the first time clearly states that the federal courts have jurisdiction to review BIA actions under the Administrative Procedures Act (APA). On P. 25, the Ninth Circuit wrote "That the substantive law to be applied in this case is tribal law does not affect our jurisdiction over an APA challenge to the BIA's decision." This is a very important statement from the appellate court because Tribes have used the "tribal law" arguing an intra tribal dispute as a defense to get cases dismissed around the country when a disenrollment action occurs, even though it also involves BIA action or inaction.
(3) P. 17, The Ninth Circuit discusses the BIA's fiduciary duty to protect the Alto's access to tribal rights and benefits and recognizes the importance of preserving the status quo by analogizing removal off the federal rolls as similar to immigration proceedings (See P. 35). This is important because being removed from the federal roll is similar to losing citizenship and all rights.
(4) P. 26-36, the Ninth Circuit clearly sets out the reasons the Tribe is not entitled to "sovereign immunity" in the Alto case. Disenrollment cases around the country have been dismissed based on sovereign immunity grounds, so this is a big step in the right direction.
READ MORE ABOUT SAN PASCUAL AT THESE LINKS
San Pascual Evictions San Pascual II
Larry Echo Hawk Screws Alto Family
34 comments:
Wow, the BIA screwed the pooch big time. Good news for the Alto family.
Very good news!
Congrats to the Alto family, although their ordeal is not over and never should of happened. Sovereignty is NOT immunity to civil rights. The illegal removal of federally recognized tribal members is just that "ILLEGAL".
the altos are back
No they are not back. But this is good news for the Jose Juan descendants!
We will be back in no time. Watch.
Yes! We are Anonymous~ Lets not count our chickens before they hatch, Obama is coming to Indian Country~ he might just have too make Adjustments to thee Department of Interior, which has been Neglecting there Detailed duties, And allowing frauds to Run Its Management, thee Altos and these Royals Jose Juan Martinez, might just get there" cakes' and eat it too". But Remember! ~There is Much and Many~Historical 'paper work" that, might bring many" Embarrassing Challenges""Within there Own" and example of embarrassing" is Fraud Allen E, Lawson and David Toler. who Are Frauds and (non San Pasqual blood) But they continue to show there Disgrace in the San Pasqual tribe.
Allen & Dave toler need to be gone!!
Let's see how much more tribal money Ernie Lawson, Ms. Diaz will waste towards fighting their false cause that doesn't protect true San Pasqual people but their own pocket books. Instead of the millions of dollars given to the lawyers for fighting an obviously false disenrollment action by the BIA, ok just by Mr. Salazar, how about pumping that money into the reservation for the descendents that live there, to raise the quality of life and create more opportunity for growth and living better lives. Oh wait.... I forgot, again that would cut into their pocket books... The only thing that puzzles me is... How come the general council allows THEIR MONEY to be spent for personal reasons that doesn't benefit the tribe? I guess we'll see in January how much more money will be diverted from the tribal members and reservation residents and thrown towards a losing cause.
Same with Pala the EC is being sued and they use tribal money to pay their lawyers. It's a civil suit the tribe is it named at all on suit. Chairman Smiths justification "We represent the tribe" so that makes it ok to use tribal funds to defend themselves from lawsuits.
Yeah Robert Smith thinks the tribe members are too stupid to even know what a Civil suit means. I guess the ones that believe he is justified in using tribal funds for a personal lawsuit are stupid or they just do not care as long as they get their monthly checks. If an honest person was chairman the tribal members would probably have bigger checks and more positive investments would be made, helping the tribe secure financial securities far beyond the Casino profits and there would be no need for so many lawyers.
In a nut shell, so far, . . . the tribe injected itself in to the case claiming that it was a necessary party to the Alto's suit relating to disenrollment. The tribe requested the court find it WAS a necessary party, requested the injunction be lifted and the Alto case dismissed. The court found that the tribe was NOT a necessary party because the BIA has decision making authority over the membership (and has the final say over the Alto disenrollment.). The tribe lost it's request to dissolve the injunction which prevents the complete disenrollment of the Alto's. The tribe also lost it's request the court dismiss the Alto case. The BIA has the ultimate authority over membership. Therefore, because this Federal Agency has the decision making authority, the Federal Court has a right to review the action of the BIA to be sure that it was not arbitrary and capricious. The case isn't over . . . . the Altos family are not back in. All this means is that the case moves forward in the Federal Court and the tribe is NOT a party to it.
Alexandra McIntosh
"Federal Court has a right to review the action of the BIA to be sure that it was not arbitrary and capricious".....How in the world do you think the Alto Family was granted the Injunction??? It was based on Echohawks arbitrary and capricious order. C'mon Mac!! get your head out of your......
You should read up on "ICRA" Ms McIntosh.
I,m not part of your tribe but, if the Bia has been arbitrary and capricious and since the tribes constitution allows the BIA to review this matter (hmm).
I don't think your going to bend over and ( screw this alto family).
As far as ICRA the ( Federal court may review already) ?
being a tribal lawyer I think the altos have a real good chance of getting what they got coming. Fed judge aleady basically ruled in there favor.
Alexandra McIntosh seems like shes against this Family. She must work for Allen Lawson and Mark Macarro.
She is. You should see some of her other postings about this family. Check them out on reztalk on Facebook
I feel sorry for the Jose Juan descendents. Across the United States tribes are disenrolling members and they are trying to get enrolled. Good luck.I bet there isn't one tribe enrolling members.
To Anonymous @ 3:01 pm who claims to be a tribal lawyer, I sure hope you aren't a lawyer if you can't decipher between there and their. They aren't San Pasqual, they have no standing in membership.
I am not a tribal lawyer but ( skilled in the art of war ).
(2:28 remark) and have 14 years of tribal law research under my belt.
The tribe is hooked in Federal Court because of the Tribes Constitution.
They cannot escape or get off the hook (In federal court).
If the Upper court rules the BIA has (screwed up ) they must fix it.
FANTASY Ruling : If the court and BIA rules the Alto family belong, they could infact:
1.Enforce injunctive relief ordered by the court.
2. The tribe would have no say so because of their " Constitution".
3. Unlike the Pala Tribe the courts "Could not " do this because of their constitution.
If it is found that the BIA is suppose to protect Individual members from a corrupt council, then the Britten descendants have a huge chance of getting back in, since Pala is one of the most corrupt councils there is and there is major proof of this corruption. It is time for the BIA to quit taking handouts and step forward to protect the people they are supposedly working for. There really needs to be a clean-up of the corrupt BIA officials, over-haul the whole program and discard the officials who take bribes from tribal councils. If this corruption continues to be dismissed as nothing it will eventually destroy all Casino tribes and those tribes will be left with nothing, no members, no casinos, no money. The council members though will walk away with millions that they have stolen and hidden in LLCs and foreign accounts, while they leave their people with nothing. It is a sad, sad, evil catastrophe of tribes which were once a sense of family and traditions, and are quickly becoming a scene of greedy foolish puppets and disgust amongst their own kind. Indians used to pride themselves on not being like the whiteman, but the corrupt leaders are proving to be worse.
1:39 p, I couldn't say it better. There are lies and deception within the BIA and tribal leaders (councils). San Pasqual Chairman and Larry Echohawk have a really good relationship. By this fact I wouldn't hesitate that other BIA officials are in BED with other Tribal Chairman's. CORRUPT!!
If you know all about this corruption with the BIA.
1. Did you report it to the press?
2. Did you protest? why not?
We have reported their corruption to the IRS, the FBI, the Department of Interior, the news channels, reporters, anyone that we could think of over and over again, but no one in authority will listen or they too are involved. Robert Smith gives campaign money like crazy to all sides just in case and then befriends these people and his lawyers and lobbyist are constantly in these people's ears explaining that the disenrolled are wrong and just want Casino money and then he protects them with sovereignty because they say they were acting under tribal council law. Eventually someone honest will step up to the plate and once some information is uncovered then the pieces will fall into place. It is said that he has gotten away with murder, more than once, because the sheriff's will not listen to the members who claim what they saw and people are so scared of being disenrolled that they won't back up the others, they are also scared for their lives, because if he will kill his own relative and hide the body under a foundation, he will do anything to save face and he has all of the tribes money to do it with. The BIA officials just keeps doing what he tells them and takes their share. The regional director in Sacramento is the aunt to one of Pala's main lawyers, which should be a conflict of interest, yet the Judges and the system ignore our pleas.
Here is the bottom line on the Alto's. Even if Jose Alto was Marcus' father, Maria Alto WAS NOT his mother!! On her 1928 CIC application she clearly states she has no living children, period! Even Marcus was her legitimate child surely she would have acknowledged this. Therefore if Jose Alto was his father, Maria was not his mother and they do not have sufficient blood of the band to be enrolled. It doesn't matter whether his grandchildren have a dna test showing they have a certain amount of native american blood, that could have come from their mother or father that are not from San Pasqual so in the end they still don't meet the 1/8" degree blood of the band, period!
jose alto was san Pasqual so that makes his grandkids some san Pasqual dosent matter about maria being san Pasqual.jose full bloodied san Pasqual. should be enough 4 some of grandkids.
To 4:32 your supposedly bottom line doesn't add up. You should read up on some history. Maybe you should spend some time on your own family. The rez tells stories and I heard your family is not San Pasqual. You should probably start your research in Sonora, Mexico....
i hear diana martinez ancestors were squatters....how does that meet blood of the band? Squatters!!
Now there is proof of BIA corruption in the Pala disenrollments. In a letter by Pacific Regional Director Amy Dutschke to Pala Chairman Robert Smith there are recommendations for changes to the Pala Constitution. These changes include revising the voting requirements for adoption of the Constitution and amendments. The BIA recommended that a majority vote be required so that a small group of members could not force the majority to accept changes with which it did not agree.
In that same letter, the Regional Director told Robert Smith:
“If the Tribe decides to incorporate our recommendations and changes and re-send the constitution, it will be
approved retroactive to 11/1/97.”
Note the word "IF", meaning that BIA approval is contingent upon presenting the recommendations to the Tribe (meaning the General Council), incorporating the changes, and re-submitting the Constitution. None of that happened. Instead Robert Smith wrote the BIA and told them the Tribe decided not to make the changes and to approve the Constitution anyway.
This letter has been hidden and it took a Freedom of Information Request to uncover it. The letter was redacted, meaning the important instructions were marked out so they couldn't be easily read. The letter was not presented to AS-IA Kevin Washburn when he was making his decision on the appeal of the disenrollees.
We are all wondering now what Amy Dutschke received for hiding this letter and allowing retroactive approval to go through. The BIA helped Robert Smith push through a Constitution that was ratified by only 27 tribal members. Then the BIA hid the evidence of their involvement. By legal definition this is complicity and criminal concealment.
We think it is more than that. We think it is evidence of conspiracy to commit fraud, because we have been denied our heritage, land rights, tribal benefits, and due process. Our tribal citizenship was stripped from us with no justification since we can prove that Robert Smith lied about our blood degree.
Look soon for new legal action arising out of this evidence. Did I also mention there is now a sworn declaration from a non-tribal member that Robert Smith bribed him to vote in a Pala Election? And that in this declaration is testimony that Robert Smith claimed to have an insider on the Pala Election Committee who would approve the vote of a non-tribal member?
This is hard evidence that cannot be hidden under a foundation. It is already out in the open, and will soon be part of the administrative record.
Let's see what lies Robert Smith comes up with now.
Hidden under a foundation?
Is this a reference to the missing Joe Scott?
Yes. This evidence is not hidden under a foundation. It is out in the open now in the exhibits that support the appeal filed by Willie Pink.
The Pala EC does not have any evidence to support its actions in the disenrollments. They claim tribal sovereignty and pretend that it is okay for them to do whatever they want because the BIA and the courts have chosen not to interfere.
The power of Pala General Council has been usurped. People are afraid to challenge Robert Smith, or they have been compromised, or they actually believe his lies.
The lull between storms is ending. Recent court decisions and new evidence is favoring the disenrollees. Keep your eyes open for news of changes in the situation.
TO anon re:
To 4:32 your supposedly bottom line doesn't add up. You should read up on some history. Maybe you should spend some time on your own family. The rez tells stories and I heard your family is not San Pasqual. You should probably start your research in Sonora, Mexico....
January 5, 2014 at 6:30 PM
Rez tells stories about who? anonymous??? so right, not from San pasqual but read the history, and correction, g grandkids wouldn't be sufficient blood to be enrolled.
Unlike the Hunters of Pechanga and the descendants from Pala, Alto's really don't belong. Just because someone is disenrolled doesn't make the trbe wrong, it means in this case this tribe di the right thing.
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