Potential Default by Foxwoods Casino Will Test Tribal Sovereignty.

They can promise to pay, but claim sovereignty when the bill comes due.

From the FT.com


A looming default by the Native American tribe that owns the Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut is stirring a debate over whether holders of billions of dollars of tribal debt can pursue their claims as creditors under US laws.

Federally recognised tribes operate as sovereign nations, and hundreds of them have turned to gaming for revenue, financing casino projects with debt including more than $5bn in high-yield bonds, according to Barclays Capital.

The Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, which owns Foxwoods, warned this week that it probably would not make a full interest payment on $500m of notes, which would result in a default on December 16, when a grace period ends.

Smaller tribal casinos have defaulted, but the size of the Foxwoods debt has drawn attention. Analysts are asking whether the tribe will use its special status to take an aggressive stance in dealing with creditors, a development that could affect tribes' access to credit.

"The Mashantucket situation could set a precedent," Moody's Investors Service said. "With casinos such as Foxwoods located on sovereign tribal land potentially out of reach of US bankruptcy law, it remains unclear whether creditors could enforce their rights."

Steven Smith, an attorney at the Dechert law firm, said: "An argument can be made that the tribe is a governmental unit, which could, if determined to be true, bar it from seeking relief under Chapter 11 altogether."

Letter To Eric Holder Asking Department of Justice to Investigate Gross Civil Rights Violations in California Indian Country

We posted this in July and it seems like with all the discussion of Pechanga's violations, it's time to resurrect the letter writing campaign. Here's the contact email: mailto:askdoj@usdoj.gov subject=USDOJ Comments


The Honorable Eric Holder
United States Attorney General
Department of Justice Building
950 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20530


Dear Attorney General Holder:


I respectfully submit this letter urging the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division to commence a full-scale investigation into the gross civil and human rights violations which have infected California Indian Country


Throughout California Indian Country, tribal officials have taken actions which have denied and/or stripped thousands of California Indians of their membership status and denied them access to federal benefits and programs in the areas of housing, education, health, voting and public works assistance. In some instances, the illegal actions occurred decades ago, however, there has been a marked increase since Indian Gaming was approved and later expanded in California.


Tribal leaders justify their right to systematically deny civil rights and expel their citizens under the guise of tribal sovereignty. Tribal leaders have routinely committed acts to deny Indian individuals due process; equal protection of tribal, state, and federal laws; property interest rights; and voting rights. Theses actions have been carried out in gross violation of laws enacted to guarantee and protect the rights of the individual Indian.


We can no longer allow those who oppose upholding the civil and voting rights of thousands of California Indians to claim that this is a sovereignty issue that rests solely within the domain of tribal courts and tribal law. Few California Tribes actually have tribal courts. Therefore, in most cases, the tribal government officials responsible for the violations of law are the very same people who pass judgment as to whether or not laws have been violated - they are the judge and jury all rolled into one.


The United States has a trust responsibility to the thousands of California Indians whose civil and voting rights have been infringed upon. And, in recognition of the special status of California Indians, Congress passed California Enrollment Act of 1928 in which certain rights were guaranteed to California Indians and their lineal descendents. 25 U.S.C. § 651.


Unfortunately, the Bureau of Indian Affairs has failed to exercise this responsibility and has allowed tribal leaders to continue to commit violations unabated. Therefore, I believe that the DOJ has the legal and moral responsibility to investigate and prosecute such violations of basic rights.


I therefore urge you to direct the DOJ Civil Rights Division to initiate an investigation into the gross rights violations described above. In addition, I trust that any investigation would not be short-circuited by those who would claim tribal sovereignty as a justification for inaction.


Respectfully submitted,

Does Tribal Sovereignty Protect Tribal Officials from Racketeering or Embezzlement?

Frequent commenter to Original Pechanga's Blog Allen L. Lee says NO:

If the person implicated for criminal acts while serving as tribal officials are actually found guilty of racketeering or embezzlement while they were tribal officials, their is no tribal sovereign immunity for those crimes.

If the dis-enrollments and moratorium can be directly tied to racketeering by criminals who have a strangle-hold on the tribal government, then federal intervention may be warranted for both the dis-enrollments and the moratorium? Don't know for sure, but it looks like racketeering, embezzlement, and fraud should be investigated.

It would mean that every official act made by suspect government oficials was also suspect, including state gambling compacts, dis-enrollments and the moratorium, land into trust, BIA contracts, etc.

OP: It would seem like the Justice Department would take an interest in a tribal council that manipulates an enrollment committee to secure the outcome they desire: Getting families disenrolled to increase their own per capita payments. This is theft of government funds.

Also:

1. Refusing to follow the Tribal Constitution so that open enrollment doesn't allow in rightful members.

2. Refusing to follow the will of the people by stopping all disenrollments which was voted on after a petition was declared valid.

3. Allowing the enrollment committee to admit the family members of Bobbi LeMere to secure her vote against the Hunter family. This would be "against" the "valid" moratorium. Why were LeMere's family allowed in?

What's YOUR opinion?

Pechanga Tribe's Masiel Crime Family Member, an "alleged" child shooter now BAIL JUMPER

The Pechanga Tribe can control their criminal element. First he 'allegedly' shoots at a child then he doesn't appear in court FORFEITING his bond. His relatives were just arrested for parole violations. Is the Pechanga Resort and Casino SAFE?

A judge today raised bail to $3 million for a 43-year-old Pechanga tribal member who did not show up in time for a hearing in his attempted murder case.

Robert Martin Masiel, who lives on the Soboba Indian Reservation, had been out on $1 million bail and was due to appear in court today for a felony settlement conference.

At his last hearing on Oct. 30, his lawyer indicated there could be a plea agreement in the offing and the matter was held over until today, according to court records.

This afternoon, a new private attorney, Michael Mack, and Masiel's other lawyer, Karen Lockhart, indicated that Masiel was "incapacitated" and thus could not appear, according to the posted court record of what transpired.

Riverside Superior Court Judge Timothy Freer ordered the defendant's bond forfeited and issued a failure-to-appear warrant. About an hour later, the judge quashed the bench warrant but kept bail at $3 million. He also set a hearing for Tuesday.

Masiel allegedly fired two shots into a group of four people -- one of whom was 14 years old -- in San Jacinto on Sept. 30, 2008.

According to sheriff's Detective Steven Fredericks, Masiel was angry over a debt owed him by one of the men.

Rudy Saucedo told investigators he owed Masiel $200 from two years before. But when Masiel asked for the money that day, he told the defendant he had just been released from county jail and would not have the money for a couple of months, according to court papers.

The shooting occurred in the backyard of the home of another man, whose property the group was helping to clean.

Masiel allegedly said, "This is for the money you owe me," then fired two shots in the direction of the group.

OP: $350,000 earner Masiel worried about $200 he was owed. It was the principle of the matter? Of course, he thinks nothing of taken money stolen from honorable tribal members his family ensured were eradicated from the Pechanga Tribe.
AND HUGE SURPRISE... The Press Enterprise didn't report that an "alleged" attempted murderer didn't appear in court!

Pechanga General Membership Meeting November 15

Here's the agenda for the next Pechanga Membership meeting. Interesting that one of the topics is a CHANGE in bylaws.

WHY would they want to change the bylaws when they don't FOLLOW them anyway? The Pechanga Tribal Constitution says OPEN enrollment in January. They haven't done that in a DECADE. Why would they CONSIDER putting Gloria Wright on the committee when her sister was removed for violating confidentiality laws?

And a discussion of the "INCIDENT" at the Pechanga school. Remember the last incident, where Hunter children were forcibly removed while tribal rangers stood by?

Will OTHER BUSINESS include a re-opening of some issues about NON-Pechanga blood members? Stay tuned.




Agenda Gen Mem November 15 2009[1]

Master Sergeant Felipe Cuevas: Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians Veteran and Now, Their Castoff.

We at Original Pechanga's Blog would like to thank all our veterans for their sacrifices. Here is an appreciation of a father, by his son, ME.

On this Veteran’s Day, I want to remember my father, Felipe Cuevas, born July 13, 1928. He was the son of Phillip and Olive Cuevas. Olive was the daughter of Mary Ann Miller, who, in turn, was the daughter of Paulina Hunter of Pechanga. Paulina was the matriarch of the Hunter Clan who was given her 20 acres of land on the Pechanga Reservation as the head of the Family.

My father grew up in Los Angeles, a graduate of Roosevelt High School and the oldest of five children, all of whom served in our military. He entered the U.S. Army in 1948 and served in many capacities, primarily as a drill instructor. He was stationed in Germany, where his wife Alice bore a son, as well as Korea, Ft. Ord, CA, Ft. Lewis, WA where I was born, and Ft. Benning, GA. At all of these posts he trained young men to serve our country. He served two tours in Vietnam, once an advisor with a South Vietnamese Army Battalion, both tours were near the end of his career.

He always taught us about our family roots at Pechanga, having helped to build the cabin on Hunter Lane in 1957 with his cousins and uncles. My first time on the reservation was when he served his first tour in Vietnam in 1966. My Aunt Tillie and Uncle Bars took my brother and me to spend time at the cabin. That was when you could still hunt on the rez, for rabbit and dove. He was proud to be Pechanga and he was happy that family members were able to bring us to the reservation while he was in Southeast Asia.

As it is Veteran’s Day, I’m proud to write about one of his achievements. This Pechanga warrior was awarded the Army Commendation Medal with “V” Device (valor). Since my scanner is down, I’ll re-type the citation here, but will have a copy linked as soon as I can, so there can be no "Rathergate" claims. Here's what the citation says:

Date action: 3 July 1967
Theater: Republic of Vietnam
Reason:

For heroism in connection with military operations against a hostile force: Sergeant First Class Cuevas distinguished himself by heroic action on 3 July 1967 while serving as Light Weapons Infantry Advisor to the 1st Battalion, 48th Infantry Regiment, Army of the Republic of Vietnam. On that date, the Viet Cong opened fire on the battalion headquarters compound with machinegun, small arms and 82mm mortar fire. Eight Vietnamese soldiers and dependents were seriously wounded during the initial phase of the attack and an aerial evacuation was requested. Sergeant Cuevas voluntarily proceeded to the helicopter landing area. Sergeant Cuevas remained in the exposed area assisting in sorting the wounded and determining priority for evacuation. Only when all wounded personnel were safely aboard an aircraft and airborne did Sergeant Cuevas return to a safe position. As result of Sergeant Cuevas’s prompt and courageous efforts, the rapid and efficient evacuation of all wounded was accomplished. Sergeant First Class Cuevas’ heroic actions were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Army and reflect great credit upon himself and the military service.

NEIL N. SNYDER, JR.
Colonel, USA
Adjutant General




My father was also awarded the Bronze Star. You don’t “win” these by the way. But he was proud of his service, proud that he was able to make young men ready to defend themselves and our country. He served 23 years in the Army.

Sadly, he was never able to enjoy the largesse that came with the successful opening of the Pechanga Resort and Casino, which brought much needed funds to the reservation and our people. Conversely, he also was never able to feel the sting of seeing his birthright ripped from his family, which now includes five grandchildren and 5 great-grandchildren by a "disenrollment" committee that included: Ruth Masiel, Ihrene Scearce, Frances Miranda and Bobbi LeMere. Pechanga proudly displays his name as a Pechanga Veteran on their website, along with his brother and sisters, yet now, they also say, HE IS NOT PECHANGA. On July 13, 2006, on what would have been his 78th birthday, the Pechanga Tribal Council heard our family’s appeal of our unconstitutional disenrollment and later did not allow our appeal. Much of that story is written here on this blog.

My father always encouraged my brother and me to do our best, to do what is right and THAT is why we continue to fight for our rights and against the evil that has been done to our family.

Dad, thank you for all that you gave to your family and to your country. I am proud to be your son. It is shameful that Pechanga doesn't reward your memory by following the rule of law and the will of the people.

Is Pechanga’s Rationing of Tribal Healthcare A Harbinger of Pelosicare? Was Pechanga's Disenrollment Committee The Tribes "Death Squad'?

Tribes like Pechanga have “Cadillac plans” which could be taxed to help pay for universal health care. Pechanga has already “rationed” their health care plan by terminating members and dependents. Pechanga has already signed virtual death warrants by taking health care away from their people


At the end of September, Mark Trahant wrote an article on taxing The logic of Tribal Health care. He mixes the Indian Health Service care which is rationed vs some tribes Health Care.


Trahant: The Indian health system’s funding is so low that many patients are counted as part of the uninsured population in government data. OP: Doesn’t that make us all feel more comfortable about Pelosi’s government option?

The Senate Finance Committee’s health reform concept paper put it this way: “The IHS itself has stated that its funding does not allow it to provide all the needed care for eligible Indians. As a result, some services are ‘rationed,’ with the most critical care given first. … The reality of this under-funding is that money for contract health services does not last the entire year, forcing IHS to limit services to circumstances involving a ‘loss of life or limb’ circumstance. This predicament is so common in Indian Country that many tribal members fear that if they need care after June, they will be forced to go without.”

Many tribes have stepped up and contributed their own money to improve health care in Indian country. This ranges from paying extraordinary medical bills for tribal members to purchasing health insurance. OP: This is NOT designed to improve health care in Indian country. It’s to take care of their own tribal members and dependents. The effect on improving health care is secondary and incidental

Trahant: Hurrah. But this is where this story takes a strange twist: The government’s response to those innovative approaches is to treat this generosity as a taxable event. The IRS wants 1099 forms sent to individual members. (Perhaps a tax bill should be sent to the U.S. government instead.) OP: The tribes that are doing this are primarily gaming tribes who are rolling in cash. Pechanga currently pays its members $30,000 per month. Health coverage is in ADDITION to that. They are able to do this because they have eliminated or “rationed” 25% of their tribal members and are keeping hundreds out of the tribe.

The Pechanga Tribe Band of Luiseño Indians in California studied its heath care needs for two years, and then enacted a mandatory group coverage policy for tribal members. “This has led to measurable improvement in the physical health of our tribe. Earlier this year, we opened a new exercise facility that contributes to and facilitates the health and wellness of our tribal citizens,” testified Mark Macarro, the band’s chairman, before the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs Sept. 18.

However, the IRS asked the tribe to demonstrate how the program was “need” based – or it would consider these taxable benefits. OP: Hunters were involved in the development of health insurance for Pechanga members AND were responsible for a health clinic being built on the reservation, NOW they don't qualify for either. There was a need for coverage for the 230 tribal members and another 250 dependents that were terminated! Factors in the tribe felt that others shouldn’t receive their rightful benefits.

“It appears to us that the IRS is interpreting ‘need’ as meaning only ‘financial’ need,” Macarro said. “From our perspective, this makes absolutely no sense. The Pechanga government has stepped in where the federal government has fallen short for our people. … Pechanga has decided not to wait on the federal government to fulfill its trust obligation to our people.” The basic issue is how the IRS interprets its “general welfare” exclusion. Sarah Ingram, the IRS commissioner for Tax Exempt and Government Entities, said there is a difference in the law between those who work for tribes as employers and tribal members. “Where there is no employer involved, the (tax) Code contains no provision that would allow a tribal member who is not a tribal employee to exclude the value of tribally-provided health care coverage.”

OP: There is NO financial need for the tribe to pay for members health care. Not with the $360,000 they are making now that the have cut blood members and relatives from the tribe.

Trahant: There are two ways to fix this mess. Congress could clarify the law (the route the IRS would prefer). Or a “revenue ruling” could easily fix this problem administratively, testified Scott Taylor, a professor of law at the University of St. Thomas in Minneapolis. He cited other examples of such a governmental exclusion, including the Veterans Administration and Medicare. Taylor is an expert and was a professor-in-residence with the IRS.
Those who decry the under-funding of Indian health could come up with real appropriations and make the system whole.

OP: Exactly. Gaming tribes should be able to pay for health care for tribal members, said members can pay taxes on that health care to their dependents. Tribes who follow their tribal law should be held up as good examples, tribes like Pechanga which don’t should be handled separately, like a true sovereign nation. Don't lump the rich tribes in with the poor. And remember, Pechanga, via their unlawful moratorium and disenrollments, have foisted the health coverage of many onto the states, and they've created MORE poor people.

WHO is caught in the Pechanga Moritorium on Membership of Rightful People UPDATE

UPDATE: Have moved this up on the blog so that those caught up in the moratorium can find it easier. It's been up for TWO weeks and we still haven't heard from what? Two people? Please moratorium people, we are giving YOU a place to be heard, so stand up and let's hear from you

We have a couple of commenters who bemoan the fact that there aren't many stories or comments on the unconstitutional Pechanga Tribe of Temecula, CA's moratorium of new members.

The moratorium has been in place for 12 years now and it was created to "give the enrollment committee" time to catch up. We ask: How is that "catch up" going? Can the enrollment committee be so INEPT that they can't look at the applications and see who rightfully belongs?

Below is a story we posted in December of 2008 describing one family. We will post it again in its entirety and would LOVE to read comments from those in the moratorium. Tell us YOUR story, what family you belong to, how many are in your family that SHOULD be in the Pechanga tribe. Let's HEAR FROM YOU.

From December 2008:

Pechanga's Moratorium People: From Pechanga, But Not OF Pechanga

The Rios/Tosobal Family has ties to the Pechanga tribe, from his mother back to his great-great-great-grandmother, born in 1811. (That’s when Abe Lincoln was 2 years old!)

So, when his mother died in 1978 and left him a piece of reservation land, Manuel Rios Jr. began trying to make arrangements to bring water and electricity to the plot so he could set up a home there. 30 years later, he has yet to get tribal approval to do anything with the land.
Tribal officials had told him he and his family are not on the rolls, he said, and they won’t get considered for membership until a moratorium on new enrollments is lifted now extended past 2010. His family members, who number more than 100, have stacks of documents that they say they submitted to the enrollment committee 15 years ago.

As a nonmember, the Rios family has no recourse against the sovereign nation. He can’t sue the tribe in an outside or tribal court, and he can’t vote on the moratorium or cast a ballot against the elected tribal leaders.

The reservation has changed dramatically since Rios’ mother was a girl there, thanks to the opening of a $262 million resort and casino and other businesses. Now that tribal members collect a reported $30,000 in gaming profits a month, disputes over membership are commonplace.

Rios and others insist they once were members, and they allege that someone removed their names in order to ensure larger shares of gaming profits for the other members.
Tribal Chairman Mark Macarro has said tribes work hard to make sure that there’s due process in enrollment matters, yet, in reality, there is no due process.
He also contends that many recent applicants had no interest in the tribe until it was rich. ‘‘Where were these people before there was a casino?’’ Macarro asked.

Rios’ 53-year-old son, Manuel Rios Jr. of Riverside, said he’s glad his grandmother left the reservation, and her descendants avoided being mired in reservation poverty because of it. ‘‘I was out getting an education so I wouldn’t have to suck the money from the state of California to support me,’’ he said in an interview in Fontana. ‘‘We were paying for their (tribal member’s) welfare.’’

The Rios family members contend that the Pechanga tribal leadership is using sovereignty to improperly deny them membership and is acting like a dictatorship. In fact, Pechanga’s own constitution provides for OPEN ENROLLMENT every January. In the most recent disenrollment of the Hunter family, which occurred in 2006, the tribe stated that the membership, which voted to stop ALL disenrollments, had no authority to do so. That would mean, they have the power to keep people from getting IN, but no the authority to keep people from getting thrown OUT. That makes no sense at all.

Soboba Chairman Robert Salgado RELIEVED OF DUTIES Following ARREST

UPDATE:   Salgado pleads GUILTY

Robert Salgado has been relieved of his duties as head of the Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians, according to a written statement released Tuesday by the tribe.

Tribal liaison Mike Hiles said the tribe would have no additional comment, but said in the e-mailed message, “Effective today, the Tribal Council of the Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians has placed Robert Salgado Sr. on administrative leave pending resolution of the allegations against him, during which time Mr. Salgado is not authorized to conduct business or represent the tribe in any capacity. The decision was made by the Tribal Council of the Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians in a closed session today.”

Salgado was arrested by FBI agents last week on a 36-count federal grand jury indictment accusing him of soliciting and taking bribes from four companies doing business with the tribe.

In a news release announcing the indictment, Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jill T. Feeney and Brian E. Klein of the Major Frauds Division said, “As the elected chairman of the Tribal Council of the Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians, Salgado exercised substantial influence over the business dealings of the tribe and he had the authority to sign contracts on behalf of the Soboba band.”

Bribery is a crime for officials in tribes that have received $10,000 in federal assistance during the year in which the offenses are alleged to have been committed.

Six counts of the indictment involve filing income tax returns that substantially understated Salgado’s income.

Though the returns gave income amounts ranging from about $146,000 to more than $200,000, his actual income was “substantially higher,” according to the indictment.

Pechanga Chairman Mark Macarro on Nancy Pelosi: She knows the trust responsibility of the Unites States

Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians Chairman Mark Macarro, who has betrayed so many of his tribal constituency, spoke highly of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi after she met with the 21 of our nation's Native people. Many of them honorable, others, like Macarro, who dishonor the memory of true Pechanga people.

“To the recollection of many participants, no sitting speaker of the House has ever convened an issues meeting with tribal leadership,'' Macarro said. “Clearly, Speaker Pelosi understands the trust responsibility of the United States with tribes and regards it with the utmost seriousness.”

Macarro FAILED to uphold this basic tenet of Pechanga law:

"IT SHALL BE THE DUTY OF ALL ELECTED OFFICIALS OF THE BAND TO UPHOLD AND ENFORCE THE CONSTITUTION, BYLAWS, AND ORDINANCES OF THE TEMECULA BAND OF LUISENO MISSION INDIANS; AND ALSO, TO UPHOLD THE INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS OF EACH MEMBER WITHOUT MALICE OR PREJUDICE."

Pechanga's Membership Battle: Macarro's Lies and now 4 years and Growing

Have you seen KNBC's story on Pechanga's Membership Battle? Click on the link to watch Pechanga Chairman Mark Macarro get caught in a lie the first 15 seconds of the piece.





Please watch the video and SHARE it on your Facebook and MySpace pages for additional viewer reach. You can also click Yahoo's BUZZ UP for extra promotional value to this piece.

Muskogee Area Office of BIA Under Scrutiny

Our friends the Cornsilk's, are reporting at John's Place that:

The Muskogee Area Office of the BIA, according to a confidential source, is under close scrutiny by Department of Interior investigators. Under conditions of anonymity, a source in tribal government stated that Jeanette Hannah, MOA director has been placed on administrative leave pending results of the internal investigation.

The source also stated that another employee with the last name of Sullivan was also placed on administrative leave.

A number of BIA employees are being brought into Muskogee, some from as far away as Phoenix, to give information about Hannah's administration and behavior, which some have described as dictatorial and capricious.

Charles Head, Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma member and BIA employee, has been appointed as acting director, the source said, and added that all of the cameras have been turned off in the federal building so that Hannah will not know who is coming in to give evidence, which may incriminate her as the investigation broadens.

The source stated that one area of concern for the investigators will be budgetary discrepancies that may indicate corruption that could touch area tribal governments that have benefited from decisions Hannah has made over the past few years. Hannah is a member of the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma.

UPDATED: Soboba Chairman Salgado Indicted on Tax Evasion and Soliciting Bribes

UPDATE: The chairman of the Soboba Band of Luiseno Indians has pleaded not guilty to accepting more than $250,000 in bribes from tribal vendors.
Soboba Chairman Robert Salgado entered the plea Monday in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles.
Salgado is charged in a 36-count indictment with conspiracy, bribery and filing a false tax return. Prosecutors say Salgado accepted bribes from vendors who had business contracts with the tribe, which is based in Riverside County.

Proving that NO amount of money is enough the chairman of Soboba, who made over $280,000 in 2006 (according the the indictment)AND over $1.1 MILLION from 2001-2006 tax years is indicted for solicitation of bribery.

LATIMES reports Robert Salgado, the long-serving, colorful and often controversial leader of the Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians, was arrested by FBI agents Friday on charges that he accepted more than $250,000 in bribes from vendors and hid his income from the Internal Revenue Service.

Salgado, 67, surrendered to authorities after being told that he had been charged in a 36-count indictment by a federal grand jury in Los Angeles.

"The indictment alleges a long-running scheme in which Mr. Salgado lined his pockets with money from companies hoping to do business with the tribe," said Thom Mrozek, spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles.

According to the indictment, Salgado took bribes from four vendors. One ran a valet parking service, two had construction projects at the casino and another was involved in real estate purchases for the tribe. The documents allege that he told the vendors that if they wanted to keep their contracts or get new ones with the tribe, they needed to pay him first -- and that sometimes he made them pay his credit cards and personal expenses as well. Vendors were told to make checks payable to R.J. Woods Service, prosecutors said.

This now begs the question: WHEN is the Pechanga indictments DUE?

White House & Tribal Nations Conference Nov. 5

The White House has released details about the November 5 Tribal Nations Conference with President Barack Obama.

The event takes place in the Sidney R. Yates Auditorium at the Department of the Interior from 9am to 5:20pm. The building is located at 1849 C. Street, NW, in Washington, D.C.

Obama is tentatively scheduled to be at the meeting until 10:40am, according to the White House. This part of the conference is describe as an "interactive discussion" with the president. Numerous requests by Native Americans stung by terminations and "disenrollments" to attend did not receive responses from the White House.

Other administration officials expected to attend are: Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, Labor Secretary Hilda Solis, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Energy Secretary Steven Chu, Education Secretary Arne Duncan, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, Deputy Attorney General David Ogden, HUD Deputy Secretary Ronald Sims, DHS Deputy Secretary Jane Lute, Associate Attorney General Tom Perrelli, and Indian Health Service Director Dr. Yvette Robideaux

The tentative schedule follows:

9:00–9:30 - Welcome and Opening Remarks
9:30–10:40 - Interactive Discussion with President Obama
10:45-12:15 - Interactive Discussion with Administration Officials
12:15–1:45 - Lunch
1:45-3:00 - Interactive Discussion with Administration Officials
3:15-4:45 - Interactive Discussion with Administration Officials
4:45-5:20 - Closing Remarks