michelle joan roberts - turtle talk · 2013. 12. 12. · grett hurley rickie armstrong tribal...

DECLARATION OF SERVICE NOOKSACK TRIBAL COUNCILWOMAN MICHELLE JOAN ROBERTS- 2

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

Galanda Broadman PLLC 8606 35th Avenue NE, Ste. L1 Mailing: P.O. Box 15146 Seattle, WA 98115 (206) 557-7509

supposed to convene the constitutionally required public Regular Meeting of the Nooksack

People, which he did not do, for the twelve consecutive month. Instead, Bob Kelly and his

Tribal Council Faction again deliberated in secret via a poll, in order to further discriminate

against those “Nooksack 306” families who are “subject to pending disenrollment

proceedings” – during a time when Nooksack families often struggle the most – the Holidays.

4. Attached as Exhibit C is a true and correct copy of the December 8, 2013

Special Meeting Request of Michelle Roberts and Rudy St. Germain.

5. Attached as Exhibit D is a true and correct copy of December 9, 2013, email that

I sent to Bob Kelly and the rest of the Nooksack Tribal Council. Neither Bob Kelly nor any of

his Tribal Council followers have yet to even acknowledge receipt of our Special Meeting

request or any of my related emails since December 5, 2013, true and correct copies of which

are attached as Exhibit E.

6. As an elected Nooksack Tribal Councilperson, I am familiar with the budgets of

the Nooksack Tribe at large and of the Nooksack Tribal Council in particular. Cash

distributions such as the “School Supplies Stipends” and “Christmas Support” are made on a

per capita basis to the Nooksack Tribal Membership with monies in the Nooksack Tribal

Council budget, which include revenues generated from the Tribe’s Nooksack River Casino

and Northwood Casino, as well as the Tribe’s gas station and market. We refer to those

monies, including net Class II and III gaming revenues from Nooksack River Casino and

Northwood Casino, as “hard dollars.”

7. The “School Supplies Stipends” and “Christmas Support” distributions that the

Bob Kelly Tribal Council Faction selectively made, and are about to make, in 2013, include

those hard dollars and net gaming revenues. The same goes for the “School Supplies Stipends”


1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25


and “Christmas Support” distributions from years past, including the “Christmas Support”

gaming per capita distribution last year that gave rise to this disenrollment saga on December

19, 2012.

8. To my knowledge, the Nooksack Tribe has never promulgated a revenue

allocation plan, or submitted any such plan to the BIA, NIGC, or any other federal agency for

review or approval.

9. With approximately 2,100 members, the Kelly Faction’s proposed Christmas

Support gaming per capita distribution would be around $525,000. By excluding “Nooksack

306” families, the Kelly Faction will still distribute around $450,000. Because the Nooksack

Tribe does not have a BIA-approved revenue allocation plan, I fear that the distribution is

illegal under federal law, as well as Nooksack law. As I emailed the Kelly Faction (Exhibit D),

they are “putting the entire Tribe and our most successful businesses in harm's way.”

The foregoing statement is made under penalty of perjury under the laws of the

Nooksack Tribe and the State of Washington and is true and correct.

Signed at Deming, Washington this 9th day of December 2013.

_____________________________ Michelle Joan Roberts


1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25


DECLARATION OF SERVICE

I, Gabriel S. Galanda, say:

1. I am over eighteen years of age and am competent to testify, and have personal

knowledge of the facts set forth herein. I am employed with Galanda Broadman, PLLC,

counsel of record for Plaintiffs.

2. Today, I caused the attached documents to be delivered to the following: Grett Hurley Rickie Armstrong Tribal Attorney Office of Tribal Attorney Nooksack Indian Tribe 5047 Mt. Baker Hwy P.O. Box 157 Deming, WA 98244

A copy was emailed to: Thomas Schlosser Morisset, Schlosser, Jozwiak & Somerville 1115 Norton Building 801 Second Avenue Seattle, WA 98104-1509

The foregoing statement is made under penalty of perjury under the laws of the

Nooksack Tribe and the State of Washington and is true and correct.

DATED this 9th day of December, 2013.

GABRIEL S. GALANDA

!!

"#$%&%'!(!!!!!

tel:206.300.7801mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]

!!

"#$%&%'!)!!!!!

!!

"#$%&%'!*!!!!!

December 8, 2013 EMAILED Chairman Robert Kelly Nooksack Tribal Council Nooksack Indian Tribe 5016 Deming Road Deming, WA 98244 Re: Special Meeting Request Chairman Kelly: Pursuant to Article II, Section 5 of the Nooksack Bylaws, we demand that you convene a Special Meeting of the Tribal Council within the next three days to discuss:

• Word that you have directed Tribal staff to deny Christmas distributions to all enrolled Nooksack members who are proposed for disenrollment; and

• Your refusal to answer Councilwoman Roberts’ email information requests to you in this regard since December 5, 2013.

The Tribal Court described your exclusion of “Nooksack 306” children from tribal school supplies stipends in August, as “distasteful.” It would be beyond callous to deprive Tribal member families of much-needed Tribal holiday support. As you know full well, you must call this latest requested Special Meeting 24 hours before the date of the meeting per Article II, Section 5 of the Bylaws. You of course have refused to call various other requested Special Meetings, and have also failed to call the constitutionally mandated Regular Meeting of the Tribe for the last twelve months. There has not been a public meeting of the Nooksack People this entire year. Enough is enough. It is time for you to honor Nooksack Law and convene this latest requested Special Meeting before you ruin Christmas for over 300 Nooksack members. If we do not receive that formal notice or otherwise hear from you by 6 p.m. Monday, December 9, we will assume that you have once again denied our latest Special Meeting request in further derogation of the Nooksack Constitution and Bylaws. Very truly yours,

Rudy St. Germain Michelle Roberts Tribal Council Secretary Tribal Councilperson

Cc: Kevin Washburn Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs U.S. Department of the Interior Stanley Speaks Director Pacific Northwest Region Bureau of Indian Affairs

Judith Joseph Puget Sound Region Superintendent Bureau of Indian Affairs

!!

"#$%&%'!+!!

12/9/13 12:03 PM

Page 1 of 3

   

 

---------- Forwarded message ----------From: Michelle Roberts Date: Mon, Dec 9, 2013 at 9:35 AMSubject: Re: Special meeting requestTo: Bob Kelly , Katherine Canete , Lona Johnson, "Agripina D. Smith" , "Rick D. George", Bob Solomon Cc: Rudy ST Germain

Bob, in addition to any discrimination against the Nooksack 306 regarding the Christmas distribution, are we evenallowed to distribute monies from the Council budget, which include Nooksack River and Northwood gamingrevenues, to Tribal members without a revenue allocation plan approved by the NIGC? I worry that if we distribute acouple million dollars in gaming revenues to Tribal members without that plan or federal approval, we will violate

mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]

12/9/13 12:03 PM

Page 2 of 3

federal law and expose the Tribe to civil fines and possibly even closure of our casinos by the NIGC. That could alsoinvite federal investigation and audit of both Christmas and school supplies distributions (which are funded from thesame gaming monies) over the last several years. So the Christmas distributions, which I understand you haveinstructed to go out to only non-Nooksack 306 members starting this Wednesday, will violate IGRA as well as theTribal Constitution and federal Indian Civil Rights Act. You will be putting the entire Tribe and our most successfulbusinesses in harm's way. This is another issue we need to talk about as a full Tribal Council during the SpecialMeeting that Rudy and I have requested be held before Wednesday. Please get back to me.

!"#$%&!"#$%&&%'()*%+,-'./+)*%+,-01))2-3#241-156)78'()*%&9:1;3

12/9/13 12:03 PM

Page 3 of 3

Meeting of the Tribe for the last twelve months. There has not been a public meeting of theNooksack People this entire year. Enough is enough. It is time for you to honor Nooksack Lawand convene this latest requested Special Meeting before you ruin Christmas for over 300Nooksack members.

If we do not receive that formal notice or otherwise hear from you by 6 p.m. Monday, December 9,we will assume that you have once again denied our latest Special Meeting request in furtherderogation of the Nooksack Constitution and Bylaws.

Very truly yours,

Rudy St. Germain Tribal Council Secretary

Michelle Roberts Tribal Councilperson

Cc: Kevin WashburnAssistant Secretary – Indian Affairs U.S. Department of the Interior

Stanley SpeaksDirectorPacific Northwest Region Bureau of Indian Affairs

Judith JosephPuget Sound Region Superintendent Bureau of Indian Affairs

mollyjonesNone set by mollyjones

mollyjonesMigrationNone set by mollyjones

mollyjonesUnmarked set by mollyjones

!!

"#$%&%'!"!

Ryan D

Ryan D

michelle joan roberts - turtle talk · 2013. 12. 12. · grett hurley rickie armstrong tribal...

Documents