A federal administrative law judge shed rather more darkness than light on a recent decision by the Bureau of Indian Affairs that gave control of the contentious Picayune Rancheria of Chukchansi Indians of California to the tribal council elected in 2010.
The BIA was attempting to restore stability to the tribe, where rival factions have been fighting and where it has been nearly impossible for the tribe to function, including operate its Chukchansi Gold Resort & Casino in Coursegold. However, one of the factions appealed the decision.
The judge, Steven Linscheid, refused to back the BIA decision, writing that the BIA’s Pacific Region Director Amy Dustchke, wasn’t able to explain the rationale for why the decision was necessary.
The decision punts the case to the Department of the Interior Board of Indian Appeals, a process that could take years. That leaves one faction in charge for some contracts, while another will be left controlling the tribal complex and casino, which has continued to operate, although it has nearly missed several bond payments.
Although factions battling within a tribe are not rare, this particular situation is considered extremely rare. David Wilkins, a professor of Indian Studies at the University of Minnesota, quoted by the Fresno Bee, remarked last week, “I think all the parties are making this up as they go along. All this stuff with gaming is so fresh and these contending factions are so novel that it’s really hard to say where it’s headed.”
Kenneth Hansen, a Fresno State University professor of political science, told the Bee that the federal government doesn’t care about such conflicts. “The only thing the government seems to have been responsive to in any of this is the bankers. If somebody owes money to the bank, that’s all they get upset about.”
He was referring to the fact that a federal bankruptcy judge did step in at one point to force the tribe to adopt a method for keeping its bond payments up to date.
