And now:LISN <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes:
Subject: Goshutes - bribing - nuclear waste storage
Date: Fri, 27 Aug 1999 10:49:59 -0400
From: Lynne Moss-Sharman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Bribe Allegations Made In Goshute Suit
August 27, 1999
BY BRENT ISRAELSEN
THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE
Leon Bear, chairman of the Skull Valley Band of Goshutes,allegedly used
money he got from out-of-state utilities to try to bribe
fellow tribal members to support a controversial nuclear-waste
storage proposal. On several occasions during the past few years, Bear
offered tribal members "thousands of dollars" if they would sign
documents
in support of the proposal, according to a sworn statement signed by
Sammy
Blackbear. The statement was filed this month in U.S. District Court as
part of an ongoing lawsuit brought against the federal government by a
Goshute opposition group led by Blackbear. Danny Quintana, attorney for
Bear and the tribe, called
Blackbear's allegations "ridiculous." "I honest to god couldn't make
sense
of what [Blackbear] is saying," Quintana said. "I don't think he has the
slightest clue as to what's going on."
Blackbear and the opposition group are attempting to obtain a
copy of an agreement Bear helped negotiate with Private Fuel
Storage (PFS), a consortium of eight electric utilities that proposes to
store thousands of tons of highly radioactive waste on the Goshute
reservation. In addition to attempted bribery, Bear also threatened to
withhold the annual tribal dividend payments to some members unless they
voted to retain him as tribal chairman, according to Blackbear. "Leon
Bear
displayed the checks for such payments in front of the Tribal General
Council and said in essence, `Vote for me or you don't get this money,'
"
Blackbear stated.
Blackbear is one of more than a dozen Goshutes who oppose the
waste-storage plan. They are being assisted in their legal fight with a
$50,000 grant from Utah Gov. Mike Leavitt's administration, which is
actively opposed to the proposal. Electric utilities and the federal
government have been trying for decades to find a permanent, centralized
resting place for highly radioactive waste generated by the nation's
commercial nuclear-power plants. The waste, which is spent nuclear-fuel
rods, can remain dangerous for up to 10,000 years. A Decade to Wait: The
U.S. Department of Energy is building a waste repository at Yucca
Mountain
in southern Nevada, but it is not scheduled to be ready until 2010. PFS
says its utilities cannot wait that long. In 1997, PFS signed a lease
agreement with the Goshute tribe leadership, headed by Bear,
to store the waste temporarily on the Skull Valley reservation, about 50
miles west of Salt Lake City. The Goshute leaders tout the
venture as a safe way to bring economic opportunities to the largely
impoverished 130-member tribe. When Leavitt's office asked for a copy
of
the lease from the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), numerous
portions
were blacked out. The state says it wants a copy of the entire lease to
see
whether there are adequate safety and cleanup provisions. But the BIA
said
the redacted portions, which include the amount of money PFS will pay
the
Goshutes, contain proprietary information that is exempt from release
under
the federal Freedom of Information Act.
The state then sued the BIA in federal court to gain a full copy of
the lease agreement. A short time later, Blackbear's opposition group
filed
a similar lawsuit that also sought an order to declare the lease null
and
void. Blackbear and his co-plaintiffs call into question the authority
of
Bear and others on the three-person tribal executive committee that
signed
the lease agreement with PFS.
The Tribal General Council, composed of the approximately 70
adult members of the tribe, has never approved the lease agreement
and never authorized Bear or anyone else to do so, according to
Blackbear.
Ripoff Accusation: Duncan Steadman, an attorney for Blackbear
and the opposition group, told U.S. District Judge Dale Kimball this
week that his clients suspect the tribe was "ripped off" in the lease
agreement and that the BIA did not do its job to protect the tribe.
Steven
Roth, attorney for the BIA, said the public's interest to see the entire
lease agreement is outweighed by the BIA's responsibility to prevent
release of sensitive information that could compromise the tribe's
ability
to do business. Val Antczak, attorney for PFS, which has intervened in
the
case,
said the court has no jurisdiction over questions of the validity of the
lease or the tribal's governing body. In a motion filed to keep Bear
from
being subpoenaed, Quintana invokes the tribe's sovereign-nation status
and
says the proper forum for tribal members' grievances is before the
tribe's
general council, not the federal court. Kimball has taken the issues
under
advisement, ordering additional briefings from attorneys on the
questions
of whether the lease is valid.
"Let Us Consider The Human Brain As
A Very Complex Photographic Plate"
1957 G.H. Estabrooks
www.angelfire.com/mn/mcap/bc.html
FOR K A R E N #01182
who died fighting 4/23/99
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
www.aches-mc.org
807-622-5407
