TRIBE: CA's BAD ACTOR Provisions Likely VIOLATE the U.S. CONSTITUTION: WORSE than a TEAM NICKNAME

Legal Analysis of I-Poker Legislation by Harvard University Constitutional Law Professor Laurence H. Tribe

Laurence H. Tribe, Professor of Constitutional Law at Harvard Law School and one of the foremost U.S. constitutional scholars, has concluded that the “bad actor” provisions in two proposed iPoker bills in the California Legislature likely violate the U.S. Constitution.

Following a thorough legal analysis of Senate Bill 1366 (Correa) and Assembly Bill 2291 (Jones-Sawyer), Prof. Tribe concluded that both proposed bills are unlikely to survive a Constitutional challenge on several grounds. Among Prof. Tribe’s conclusions:

Constitutionally prohibited Bill of Attainder:

* The Senate and Assembly bills both contain provisions clearly designed to exclude readily identifiable (even though not expressly named) entities such as PokerStars from the California online poker market. These provisions fly in the face of the U.S. Constitution’s command that “[n]o State shall … pass any Bill of Attainder.”

* Under settled principles, a law is an unconstitutional bill of attainder if it “legislatively determines guilt and inflicts punishment upon an identifiable individual without provision of the protections of a judicial trial.” The Framers drafted the Bill of Attainder Clause as “a general safeguard against legislative exercise of the judicial function, or more simply — trial by legislature.”… It is indisputable that S.B. 1366 and A.B. 2291 exclude certain former Internet poker providers from California’s intrastate Internet poker market without any judicial trial.

* My conclusion is that both proposed bills are, and would probably be found by a court  to be, constitutionally prohibited bills of attainder.

2nd Amendment issue? Federal Judge Issues RESTRAINING ORDER in Paskenta Dispute:

After months of tribal dispute surrounding Rolling Hills Casino that prompted a lawsuit from the State of California, a federal judge Wednesday evening issued a temporary restraining order against the Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians.

The order remains in effect in advance of a hearing set for June 30th. It says that tribal members are barred from attempting to disrupt casino operations, from having armed guards within 100 yards of the property and from having any firearms on tribal properties.

In the lawsuit filed Tuesday, the State of California claimed the presence of armed guards and so-called tribal police at the casino during a recent standoff posed an "imminent threat to health and public safety."  It said that threat was a violation of a gaming compact between the state and the tribe that was approved in 1999.

Tehama County Sheriff's deputies were brought in to keep the peace, racking up tens-of-thousands of dollars in overtime and pulling deputies off other critical assignments.

In her ruling Wednesday evening, federal judge Kimberly Mueller said the taxing of Sheriff's office resources "poses a threat to the public health, safety and welfare."

The ruling also says the state "made a strong showing" that it is likely to prevail on its argument that the tribe violated its gaming compact with the state due to the threat posed by the ongoing standoff.

However, the judge made no final ruling on that matter, instead allowing time for both sides to prepare a case for a hearing on June 30th.

If the judge were to rule that the tribe violated its compact with the state, the compact could be nullified, effectively shutting the casino down.

Morongo Tribe OPPOSES Calfornia POKER BILL. Bad Actors SHOULD include APARTHEID PRACTICING PECHANGA TRIBE.

The Morongo tribe and its card club allies oppose the bill because it would effectively exclude their partner PokerStars.

In a statement, the Morongos said: “We strongly oppose the so-called ‘bad actor’ language that is nothing other than a blatant attempt to provide certain interests with unfair competitive advantage by arbitrarily locking out trusted brands.

“We will vigorously oppose any legislation that includes this language.”

PokerStars remains the largest online poker site in the world and is the subject of a $4.9bn buy-out by the Montreal-based Amaya Gaming.

Whether the acquisition and associated board changes at PokerStars will enable the operator to access US markets from which it has to date been excluded remains to be seen.

Some of the signatories to the Poker bill are well known BAD ACTORS themselves, including the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians led by Mark Macarro.

NOOKSACK 306 GET RIGHT OF DISCOVERY in Disenrollment Against BOB KELLY

 Good day for the Nooksack 306 as the judge rules that discovery is granted.  We have the decision of Judge Jones here:

Rather than offer an advisory opinion on claims that Plaintiffs may or may not 
pursue, and rather than opine on the adequacy of an administrative record that the court 
has not seen, the court orders as follows: 

1) Defendants shall produce the administrative record as soon as is practicable, if
they have not done so already. They shall file the administrative record no
later than July 11. If they wish to request an extension of this deadline, they
must, at a minimum, file a motion demonstrating the court why they did not
have adequate time to prepare an administrative record in the more than eight
months since they filed their answer.
2) Plaintiffs shall review the administrative record and, no later than July 25, they
shall meet and confer with Defendants to discuss whether they believe the
administrative record is complete, and whether they believe they need
discovery beyond the administrative record.

COOK Family LOSE APPEAL at Shingle Springs: Disenrollment STANDS, But can RE-Apply for Membership

The tribal court for Shingle Springs has denied the Cook family appeal, not on the merits, but because they tribe followed the ordinance rules

HERE IS THE MONEY QUOTE:
It seems to this Court that the difficulty stems from the Department of the Interior's system wide failure to keep complete, clear records, and make those available to Indian individuals while simultaneously imposing their own census rolls on tribes to use as the basis for their membership criteria. 

WHAT do you think? The order is after the jump

Kamala Harris SUES PASKENTA BAND of Behalf of CALIFORNIA: Feds SHIRK Fiduciary Duty AGAIN, Fiddling While Indian Country Burns

While Sen. Claire McCaskill fiddled with Dr. Oz today and Harry Reid railed against an NFL team, the Attorney General of CA, Kamala Harris filed suit against the Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians.  Harris says the tribe, under the compact must protect the physical safety of patrons and employees (while ignoring second hand smoke issues)

Hopefully, the federal court will step up to the plate and take action because the Paskenta Band tribal dispute has escalated while the federal government shirks its fiduciary obligation to ensure that the dispute is FAIRLY and QUICKLY resolved.  

Violence occurs when there is no procedural due process, meaning a FAIR process -- and it is close to breaking out on several other reservations in California.  We have ALREADY seen this at Chukchansi where one faction fired Bear Pepper Spray and burning logs at elders.

The BIA ignores illegal acts and racketeering against Indian citizens under the cloak of "sovereign immunity." 

While Redskins Lose Trademark, GOVERNMENT IGNORES the ABUSES in Indian Country.

While America's Senators and government agencies ignore the REAL damages to Indian Country via disenrollment, segregation, apartheid, elder abuse, theft of per capita, loss of voting rights, the Washington Redskins have lost their trademark registration: 

In the latest blow to the N.F.L.'s defense of the Redskins as a team name, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, part of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, canceled the trademark registration of the name Redskins for use in connection with a professional football team, saying that “a substantial composite of Native Americans found the term Redskins to be disparaging.”

The decision was hailed by some Native American groups and members of Congress who have pressured Roger Goodell, the commissioner of the N.F.L., to force Daniel Snyder, the owner of the Redskins, to abandon the name.

The board does not have the authority to ban the use of the term, and the registration of the trademark is likely to be held intact while the team appeals, so there will be little immediate impact on sales of team merchandise.

Learn More on Disenrollment, Ethnic Cleansing in Indian Gaming Country at these Links:

Gaming Revenue Blamed for Disenrollment

disenrollment is paper Genocide

CA Tribal Cleansing

Tribal terrorism

TRIBAL TERRORISM includes Banishment

Nooksack Disenrollment

Jennie Miranda Spotted At Pechanga Graduation Ceremony? Disenfranchisement Doesn't Mean What it Used to.

Jennie Miranda, former Pechanga tribal chair, was disenfranchised for stealing from the tribe.  We reported that here: Disenfranchisement

Our understanding was that Miranda was instructed to not set foot on the reservation, but she was spotted at a graduation ceremony located in the GOVERNMENT CENTER.    I'm guessing 50 years ain't what it used to be.

Guess the Masiel-Basquez Crime family can do what it wants.  Or was it done with the okay of current Chairman Mark Macarro?

All levels of shame here.

Has the California Tribal Business Alliance JUMPED THE SHARK? Two of Three Member Tribes UNDER FIRE for Corruption

We wrote last year about the California Tribal Business Alliance and one of their three members, the PALA BAND of Luiseno Indians:

A Gaming Tribe consortium led by the DESPICABLE ROBERT SMITH, is against a state exercising their sovereignty in the internet gaming area. Meanwhile, the rotund leader of the Pala Band of Indians in CA, wields sovereignty like a club to beat the weak of his tribe. 
Almost immediately after New Jersey legalized Internet gambling, an alliance of American Indian tribes operating thousands of miles away issued a statement decrying the move, accusing the state of weakening gambling license requirements.
The California Tribal Business Alliance’s reaction was a testament to the far-reaching effect of New Jersey’s decision in February, affecting a debate American Indian tribe casinos have grappled with for years even though no tribes operate in New Jersey, observers said.
NOW,  that a 2nd member of the CTBA, The Paskenta Band, with Leslie Lohse under fire for corruption:

A $3 million jet and more than 162 ounces of gold are at the center of a simmering dispute within the Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians in California.

John Crosby, the tribe's economic development officer, says the jet and the gold were purchased with tribal funds. They are being held in undisclosed location due to a dispute with Chairman Andy Freeman.

“I did buy the gold for the tribe,” Crosby told The Sacramento Bee.

But Freeman says Crosby was not authorized to buy $209,000 in gold. And he accuses Leslie Lohse, who has been serving as treasurer of the tribe, of using the private jet for personal trips, including some to see her son -- Kyle Lohse, plays for the Milwaukee Brewers.
All told, Freeman claims Crosby and Lohse stole $10 million from the tribe. But they showed employment contracts to the Bee that authorized the tribe to extend $5 million lines of credit to each one of them.
Lohse also claims the dispute began when Freeman asked the tribe for funds to buy a third house. The chairman disputed that accusation.

CAN THIS GROUP really be taken seriously anymore?

With AMAYA buying POKER STARS, WILL the only BAD ACTORS in CA Internet Gaming be TRIBES?

There is a $5 billion offer on the table, which could mean that Pokerstars could come back into the market. Bad Actors clause has been a sticking point it CA's internet gaming issue:

Amaya believes the agreement will expedite the return of PokerStars, the biggest poker brand in the world, into the United States. PokerStars did not receive a license to operate in the regulated states due to "bad actor" clauses which targeted companies that offered online poker after the passing of the UIGEA in 2006. Amaya currently is licensed for online gaming operation in Nevada and New Jersey.  

That leaves unanswered in California is why BAD ACTORS in the TRIBES themselves aren't excluded?   This would be an excellent opportunity to call attention to the tribes that violate civil and human rights.   AND many tribes, via termination of their citizenry, have STOLEN $750 MILLION from Native Americans.

DO WE REALLY want those bad actors, thieves, abusers to gain financially? THESE tribes should be excluded:

Happy Father's Day

Best Wishes to all Father's on this Day.   Hope that all of you that still have their father's with them are able to spend time together.    I am reminded on this day, that Mark Macarro stripped my veteran Father of his heritage, posthumously.   Makes you wonder what kind of father he is.

120 Paskenta Tribal Member Petition BIA's TROY BURDICK to Recognize New Council

Around 120 members of the Paskenta band of Nomlaki Indians, led by Chairman Andrew Freeman, traveled by bus Thursday to deliver petitions to Central California Superintendent of the Bureau of Indian Affairs Troy Burdick calling for affirmation of a Tribal Council elected in May.

The group is demanding the BIA allow the tribe to exercise its sovereign right to determine the tribe's governing body, according to a press release issued Thursday morning.

The move comes in response to a letter Burdick issued Monday recognizing Freeman and four ousted members of the tribe as the last uncontested, duly elected Tribal Council.

David Swearinger, vice chairman; Leslie Loshe, treasurer and Geraldine Freeman, secretary were removed from the Tribal Council during an April 12 General Council meeting of the tribe. Allen Swearinger, member at large, did not attend a subsequent meeting in May and was replaced on the Tribal Council as a result.

A "Tribal Police" force of about 30 armed men in uniform representing the ousted members attempted early Monday to shut down Rolling Hills Casino, which is owned by the tribe and remains open under those aligned with Andrew Freeman. Armed security employed by the casino prevented the shutdown, but a standoff continues at the Corning property.

BREAKING: NOOKSACK 306 Disenrollment STOPPED AGAIN by Tribal Court!

Word from our friends up NORTH!

The Nooksack Tribal Court just stopped the disenrollment, again!    

The Kelly Faction did not submit their latest rules for federal approval and that was that! It is high time for Bob Kelly to start playing by the rules. WE BELONG!

WORSE THAN REDSKINS NICKNAME: Consorting with Apartheid Leader Mark Macarro of Pechanga

I once wrote to NARF (Native American Rights Fund) about seven years ago for help with the disenrollment issues at the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians. 

  The response: "We don't do Indian vs. Indian".

Well now one of the reasons:  Pechanga Chairman Mark Macarro is on their board of directors. He's the leader of the Pechanga Tribe, who oversaw the termination of 25% of his incredibly shrinking tribe.  He has violated the civil rights and human rights of tribal members, threatened others with expulsion, while maintaining the cool exterior of someone with unadulterated power

Human and Civil Rights Abuser Mark Macarro (far right) of Pechanga,
which practices APARTHEID on their Reservation.

Read how the Pechanga Tribe's Termination Committee disenrolled the Hunter family  which still maintain their original allotment from 1895, one which many in the tribe cannot claim.

Macarro ignored the will of the people, the final authority in all matters of government and 

business of the tribe, and their political self determination when, after the people voted to outlaw 

disenrollment in 2005, he and the Pechanga tribal council allowed the Hunter family to be 

disenrolled anyway in 2006 in violation of a legally binding duly passed law. He failed to follow the

tribal constitution.

Macarro did not maintain the Band's distinct and unique cultural identity when, after promising the 

United States Congress and the U.S. Department of Interior in 2002 that no development 

whatsoever would take place and sensitive environmental and cultural resources on the Great Oak 

Ranch property were to be preserved and protected as they were, and a golf course was put on the 

land instead.

Read about how descendents to the land from the TOSOBOL family were banished for picking sage while a child molester was okay to live on the Rez.   Their family members (Ibanez - Vasquez) worked to keep them out and control their land rights.

Read about the Corruption Exposed at Pechanga…  quid pro quo for terminations with "exceptions" to the decade long moratorium on new members.  Former Enrollment Committee chair's sisters gained entrance to the tribe, while over 100 were excluded...after two large families were terminated.

Elder Abuse at Pechanga  loss of per capita and health benefits that elders desperately needed to maintain their self-reliance gained when the Pechanga Resort and Casino

And YES apartheid is being practiced at Macarro's reservation in Temecula, CA. NARF MUST be proud....

The Native American Rights Fund doesn't help NATIVE AMERICAN's with their RIGHTS? They worry about a team NICKNAME, yet WELCOME an abuser, a cheat, a thief and one who does NOT follow tribal law into their BOARD OF DIRECTORS.... we call SHAME ON YOU.

WORSE than REDSKINS NICKNAME: REDDING RANCHERIA DISENROLLMENT Decade

Conrad Foreman, grandson of the REDDING RANCHERIA's original tribal chairman, Bob Foreman, had this to say today:

Did Redding Rancheria forget what they did 10 years ago, my signs outside should help them remember, because its about to hit them hard! 

NBA AD Feature ANTI- Redskins Spot, IGNORES Abuses BY TRIBES THAT are WORSE Than a NICKNAME.

In ANOTHER example of choosing the "EASY ISSUE" rather than discuss the TRIBAL ABUSES of Disenrollment, Segregation, Voter Disenfranchisement... Read below for information on Oneida's RAY HALBRITTER.

A California tribe has paid for the anti-Redskins advertisement “Proud to Be” to run in seven major cities during halftime. The airing marks the first time the ad, which initially appeared online in time for the Super Bowl, has run before such a wide-reaching television audience.

Navajo Code Talkers Wearing Redskins Logo Merchandise

The Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation based about an hour northeast of San Francisco would not say how much it spent for the coveted advertising slot, only that it was a “significant investment” that was deemed necessary to further an important discussion on racism.

As I wrote last month:

ROLLING HILLS CASINO to be SHUT DOWN by PASKENTA TRIBE Until Dispute Settled

On Monday, June 9th at 6 am, the Paskenta Tribal Council began physically closing the Rolling Hills Casino.  It will remain closed until Tribal Council can resolve the disputes within the Paskenta Tribe and remedy the illegal operation of the Casino by unauthorized management and attorneys.  

"Our number one priority is public safety, and that is why the physical closure of the Casino is necessary.  It is not safe," said Paskenta Tribal Council Vice Chairman David Swearinger.  "Until we are sure that the Casino is safe, we ask the public to allow the Tribe to resolve this internal matter.  Once order is restored, Rolling Hills Casino will reopen and provide the public with the gaming experience it has come to expect."

The closure was initiated by the Tribal Police Department, at the direction of the Paskenta Tribal Council.  Utilizing a system of barricades and a clear police presence, the Tribe has been turning away customers, eliminating the threat to public safety and ensuring patrons and employees are out of harm’s way.

PASKENTA Tribe's POLICE CHIEF RESIGNS; No Resolution in sight.

Former Tehama County Sheriff Clay Parker has turned in his resignation as  police chief for the Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians.

He was hired to serve in that position one month ago by ousted members of the band's Tribal Council as two factions of the tribe fight for governance and possession of tribal property and leadership.

"For a month, I have been serving as the Police Chief of the Paskenta Tribe,” Parker said. “When I took the post I let everybody involved know that I would serve as chief until all means and modes of peaceful resolution had been exhausted; and that at any point when I realized there would be no peaceful resolution to this discord, I would resign.”

The battle began during the tribe's annual General Council meeting on April 12, when a quorum of the general council voted to suspend 76 members of the Pata family on the basis they weren't "blood" tribal members.

The General Council also removed four members of the five member Tribal Council, including Tribal Council Treasurer Leslie Lohse, who has served on the tribal council since 1998 and in 2012 was named State Assembly 2nd District Woman of the Year. Others removed from the Tribal Council were David Swearinger, Geraldine Freeman, and Allen Swearinger.

The only remaining member on the Tribal Council was Chairman Andy Freeman. The General Council voted to replace the removed members with Ambrosia Rico as treasurer, Andrew Alejandre as secretary, Leticia Miller as vice chairperson, and Natasha Magana as member-at-large.

Parker said he still recognizes the four ousted members as the “duly elected Tribal Council.”

“I have worked side by side with the duly elected Tribal Council and I have been very impressed by their efforts to call for tribal unity and work through the legal process,” he stated. “They have also engaged with state and federal officials, who have not realized the urgency of making a decision. The four members of the Tribal Council have remained true to their resolve to maintain peace and call for a unified tribe.

Parker, who serves as on the Red Bluff City Council, said it has been an honor to serve as the police chief for the past month.

“But at this time I must step down. I do wish nothing but the best for the entire tribe,” he stated.

As the tribal battle continues, disturbing allegations from both factions have been made public.

CALIFORNIA DISENROLLMENT STUDY: Information Requested for STUDY

Please help with this study if you have been disenrolled from a California tribe.  Prof. Hansen will present it at the CA Indian Conference in October.  Let's get the information out there.

CA Disenrollment Study

I’m doing a quantitative study on disenrollment from California tribes to be presented at the California Indian Conference at Cal State San Bernardino in October, and then eventually for publication. Besides the academic endeavor, I think that those of us who oppose this unjust practice need more hard evidence so that we can make a stronger case to decision makers. For now, I’m starting with California, because there seem to be a higher proportion of tribes in this state who violate the civil rights of their member citizens. But once I’ve developed a workable model, I could expand the dataset to all tribes throughout the US. California has the most tribes of any state, the highest population of American Indians, and the most casino tribes. Hence, it’s not an accident that we also have more disenrollment (aka individual terminations) here. However, numbers are hard to come by, and my dataset remains incomplete.

NOOKSACK 306 BACK in Court as Disenrollment Looms ... AGAIN

The 306 people facing loss of Nooksack Indian Tribe membership are back in tribal court attempting to block the tribal council's latest effort to oust them.

As recently as March 2014, it seemed as though the members of three threatened families -Rabang, Rapada and Narte-Gladstone - would get a reprieve from a tribal procedure known as disenrollment that began in early 2013. After a long and convoluted legal battle in Nooksack tribal courts, the Nooksack Court of Appeals ordered a halt to the disenrollment process until the tribal council could draw up an ordinance spelling out disenrollment procedures. Such an ordinance also would require approval from the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs, the appeals court ruled.

But in mid- May 2014, the tribal council began sending out new notices to some members of the affected families, scheduling July disenrollment hearings before the tribal council under the terms of a 2005 tribal membership ordinance that received BIA approval in 2006. Ironically, the 2005 ordinance bears the signature of former chairman Narz Cunanan, a member of the Rabang family who is among those who could lose tribal membership.

In a new lawsuit filed May 30, 2014, in tribal court, Seattle attorney Gabe Galanda argues that the tribal council's new disenrollment strategy does not comply with language in the March appeals court ruling, since the BIA has not approved any procedures since that ruling was handed down.

BAD ACTORS come to Agreement on Online Poker in CA.

Without the decency to be embarrassed or ashamed by their actions, gaming tribes, Pechanga, Pala and United Auburn, all well know to have violated civil and human rights of their people, with Pechanga practicing apartheid on their reservation in Temecula have notified their Democratic servants that they've reached an "agreement" on an online poker bill.  MORONGO opted out.  The SACBEE has the story.

Major California tribes with casinos announced Tuesday that they had reached agreement on legislation that would legalize online poker in the nation's largest state.

In a letter to state Sen. Lou Correa, D-Santa Ana, and Assemblyman Reginald Jones-Sawyer, D-Los Angeles – the authors of online poker bills that had each attracted support from various members of the state's influential tribal casino industry – 13 tribal leaders said they had come to terms.

"As you know, this journey has been long and difficult, but the challenges posed by the Internet demand that we harness rather than cede the technology of the future for California and for our tribal communities," the leaders wrote in the letter. "In achieving consensus for Internet poker, we reaffirm our commitment to the longstanding principle of limited gaming that has guided California's public policy toward gaming."

Notably absent from the letter is the Morongo Band of Mission Indians,

Shingle Springs Protest: On Sacramento's Capitol Steps Today at NOON

I was away from my keyboard, while celebrating our 34th wedding anniversary.  Our friends from Shingle Springs sent me this email:

My family will be protesting at the state capitol on Monday, june 2, 2014, 12noon to 2pm for rights of reinstatement with the tribe.  Do you have any one who would be interested in joining us at the protest that is from this area or anywhere else. 

If you are available, PLEASE stop by and add your support.