1977-02-15 Char-Koosta News

              VOLUME 6 NUMBER 20 FULL MOON OF BANDS SPREAD ALL OVER
FEBRUARY 15, 1977
MEMBER'S FILE SUIT -
Tribal Council Named As Defendents
The Flathead Reservation Resouces Council, lead by Ramona and Bud Liberty have carried out their final attempt at halting construction of the new Tribal Head quaters and Law & Order Complex. The group, which has consistantly opposed the construction of a new facility, met with the Tribal Council last Friday, Feb. 4, represented by their attorney Paul Smith.
Smith told the Council that the group intends to file suit against the Tribal Council if they do not comply with certain requests. Those requests are: The Council must uphold the election held last June 12, 1976, those results were a majority voting no to a complex being built in Pablo. The second request was that the election held in September did not show a majority of the ballots cast for the Pablo site, therefore a question of where the complex should be built was not decided by the September election. The group also requested that the Council reconsider their decision to declare the petition presented in November as invalid. Mrs. Liberty told the Council that names were struck from the petition arbatrarily, for reasons not so stated in the Tribal Constitution and By-Laws. She feels that this is a violation of the Member's civil rights.
The Council recommended that the suit be filed through what ever Courts were available, (whether it be Tribal Court or Federal Court). The Tribal Chairman and Vice Chairman stated that this may be the only way to settle this once and for all. Vice-Chairman, Vic Stinger, stated that the Council acted legally in all aspects of
the development of the Tribal Headquarters Complex, and in invalidating the Group petition. He further stated that it was up to the Liberty's and their attorney to prove in court that what action has been taken was not legal or violated their civil rights.
The suit was presented to the Tribal court on Monday, February 7. It names the "Tribal Council and others" as code-fendents, with Ramona and Bud Liberty as plaintiffs. The legal document is an injunction to stop the Council from signing any contract for the purpose of constructing a Tribal Headquarters Complex, and from actually beginning the said construction. The areas covered in the injunction have already occured, therefore the pur-
pose of filing such document is confusing. The Tribal court must decide now whether or not it has legal jurisdiction in hearing such a case involving the Tribal Council. The situation may have to be decided in Federal Courts.
No decision had been rendered at the time we were going to press.
Meanwhile, construction at the Pablo site continues. Foundations were poured in January, and weather permitting, will continue right on schedule. Completion date is set for the end of October for all of the major construction, with a target date set for Christmas for moving in of all Tribady housed programs.
Foundations were poured at the Tribal Headquarters Complex site in Pablo. Construction will continue on schedule despite the injunction filed Feb. 7.