Note: Out here in the sticks of the west we "hicks" use the term native Americans:
Accounting of Indians' billion$ sought
Associated Press
WASHINGTON - A federal judge should hold new contempt hearings against government officials in a case involving mismanagement of billions of dollars of American Indians' money, a court-appointed investigator recommended yesterday.
The judge should decide whether current and former Interior Department officials improperly punished a worker who alleged improper handling of records involved in the case, investigator Alan Balaran recommended.
If U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth agrees to hold a contempt trial, it would be the second in the nearly five-year-old lawsuit, brought on behalf of more than 300,000 Indians with trust accounts managed by the Department of Interior. The accounts hold proceeds from oil drilling, timber cutting, grazing and other uses of the Indians' land.
Lamberth held former Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt and former Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin in contempt of court and fined them more than $600,000 in 1999 because of problems in turning over documents.
The government admits that the accounts have been mismanaged for more than a century, with much of the money due the Indians lost, stolen or never collected. But federal lawyers appealed Lamberth's 1999 ruling that would force reforms to the system and require the government to account for how much money was lost.
The Indians asked for the new contempt sanctions last year, claiming Interior officials retaliated against a Bureau of Indian Affairs employee who gave sworn testimony in the case. Government lawyers contend there was no retaliation.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A note to our readers:
We recently upgraded our online publishing system. If you experience any problems with the Daily News Web site, please let us know. Include the date and time of the problem and a brief description. Send your comments to comments@staff.philly.com
dailynews.philly.com |
