Thursday, May 20, 2010

Snoqualmie Tribal Council Snuffs Recall Call. Fights to Hold Power

Some 50 members of the Snoqualmie Tribe called for a recall of nearly half of the tribal council in a general meeting that staff and other council members say was improperly noticed and therefore invalid.

The Snoqualmie Tribal Council had ordered and then canceled a general meeting of tribal membership on Saturday, May 8, but about 50 voting members showed up anyway at the Evergreen State Fairgrounds longhouse in Monroe. Sub-chief Nathan Barker opened the meeting, and chairwoman-elect Shelley Burch, Barker’s sister, presided.

At that meeting, attendees voted to recall six tribal council members, including MaryAnne Hinzman, Bobby Hinzman, Ray Mullen, Margaret Mullen, Kanium Ventura and Arlene Ventura, who did not attend the meeting. Recall letters stated that the recalled council members had 30 days to reply to the membership on their reasons for not attending.

The Tribal Council met five days later in a closed session Thursday, May 13, at the tribe’s Snoqualmie offices. That morning, a note from Tribe Administrator Matt Mattson posted on the door of the office stated that the general meeting was illegally held and that the council remained intact.

“Staff will continue to respond to the sitting tribal council and proceed with the understanding that Nina Repin has a renewed term and Jake Repin, Jolene Williams and Shelley Burch assume office on May 15,” Mattson’s letter stated.

According to a tribal official, the Snoqualmie Tribe’s constitution calls for the general meeting agenda to be sent to the Tribal Secretary at least 30 days prior to the meeting, and for a meeting notice to be published in a newspaper. Neither of those conditions were met.

Council members had been told days earlier that the meeting was improper, acting chairwoman MaryAnne Hinzman told the Valley Record.

The meeting was called off, she said, to avoid legal challenges.

"We didn't want to have to go to court again," Hinzman said.

While 50 votes are technically a quorum, the tribe' constitution states that recall requires a vote by at least one-third of the tribal membership, roughly 120 votes — double the number of votes tallied that Saturday.

The tribal council called for a fact-finding meeting on Wednesday, May 26, on events surrounding the meeting. Tribal officials said that no council members are being forced off the council, but some of the council members who took part in the meeting may be censured, or required to go before the membership to explain their decision.

The council is also expected to set the agenda next week for a new general meeting. That meeting will come no less than 30 days from the date the agenda is set, according to officials.


Closed office

In the letter posted on the door of the tribal center, Mattson stated that his office had been inundated with rumors of the dismantling of the tribal council.

Then-current chairman Joe Mullen and Hinzman ordered him to close the tribal office to all but staff, council and those with appointments.

Chief Barker attended Thursday’s meeting and attempted to deliver the recall letters. Instead, council members sanctioned him.

Barker disagreed with the council’s decision not to attend the meeting.

“The rest of them chose not to face the people,” he said. “You’re elected by the people. You don’t go and hide from them.”

The tribal center was locked down in an election-related council dispute last fall. During mitigation hearings between council members that followed, Barker remembers being asked by a negotiator what he wanted. His answer: a general membership meeting.

“Let the people decide what they want,” Barker said.

5 comments:

Allen L. Lee said...

Interesting turn of events.


UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON
AT SEATTLE
BILL T SWEET, et al.,
Petitioners,
v.
MARYANNE HINZMAN, et al.,
Respondents.


….This matter comes before the court on an evidentiary hearing on Bill T Sweet,
Carolyn Lubenau, Sharon Frelinger, Marilee Mai, Vyonda Rose, Lois Sweet Dorman, Linda Sweet Baxter, Ben Sweet and Charles “Chuck” Willoughby’s (“Petitioners”) petition for writ of habeas corpus under the Indian Civil Rights Act (“ICRA”), 25 U.S.C. § 1303.…


….Respondents Maryanne Hinzman, Arlene Ventura, Margaret Mullen, Katherine M. Barker, Frances De Los Angeles, Robert Hinzman, Nina Repin, Kanium Ventura, Jo-Anne Dominick, Jerry Enick, Nathan “Pat” Barker and Staci Moses were acting as members of the Snoqualmie Indian Tribe’s (“Tribe”) elected Tribal Council at the time of the April 27, 2008 meeting where Petitioners were banished. Respondents are sued in their official capacities as members of the Tribal Council for alleged unlawful actions…..
http://doc.narf.org/nill/bulletins/dct/documents/sweet.pdf

Anonymous said...

The Snoqualmie Tribal Council are inept.
They see the writing on the wall.

Anonymous said...

Fight on Snoqualmie 9. Good work so far in bringing others along with you.

Anonymous said...

because of this fight caused by certain tribes, many friends of mine are refusing to play at their casino. Although I heard from an employee there that Snoqualmie and the Mukleshoot are joining together, or had, something like that. Is any of that true?

I also recently heard that the Tulalip tribe has been enrolling people who come from other reservations because part of their lineage is Tulalip and the other part is something else. One tribal member said they had enough to go round and if you belong, you are in.

Living in a tourist town opens your ears to much news. If it is true about tulalip, no wonder the other tribal casinos are hurting. The best tribe I have ever dealt with is Swinomish. They work in the casino, they run their basket business and they are funny.

A few times a year, I love the casino, but with all the trouble, I try to pick the ones that take care of each other.

Maybe we should get a list of casinos to avoid around the US and get a list of those that go above to care for their own. Post it everywhere. I can post it in my windows at work for all those tourists to see.

sanjuanflorist

Dineh. said...

Why are the Snoqualmie People backing a gambling venture in Fiji that tramples the basic human rights of Fiji's indigenous people The Taukei? Furthermore why are they doing it under The Native American banner? Snoqualmie is but a small pocket upon a big Native America Suit.