Amador County – Jerry Cassesi and his group “Friends of Amador County” earlier this month notified the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that the status of the Buena Vista Me-Wuk’s land for a tribal casino is still pending a court review.
The District of Columbia U.S. Court of Appeals in May remanded the case back to California courts. Amador County v. Kenneth Lee Salazar, Secretary of the U.S. Interior challenged that the Buena Vista tribe’s land fails to qualify as legally recognized “Indian Land.” District Court rejected a claim by the Interior that Amador County lacked standing over the land, but said a non-action approval of a gaming compact with the state was not reviewable under portions of the “Administrative Procedure Act,” according to an opinion in the ruling May 6.
Judge David S. Tatel wrote: “We agree with the district court that the County has standing, but because we conclude that the Secretary’s inaction is in fact reviewable, we reverse and remand for the district court to consider the merits in the first instance.”
Cassesi said he was concerned that the EPA, which issued a permit to discharge wastewater, was not getting appropriate, relevant information regarding the status of the land. Friends of Amador County attorney James E. Marino of Santa Barbara explained that in a July 8 letter Jo Ann Asami, Assistant Regional Counsel for EPA Region 9.
Marino said “the EPA is unaware of the status of the fee lands located at Buena Vista, in Amador County and the pending lawsuits in which the status of that land is a major issue.” Buena Vista Rancheria of Me-Wuk Indians is also being challenged in court by Bea Crabtree and June Guerry, “two descendants of the original occupying/assignees of the former rancheria before it was dissolved and dis-established from any form or class of ‘Indian Country.’”
The 67.5 acres in 1927 “was acquired by the federal government in fee as a rancheria for the use of any needy or itinerant Indian,” Marino wrote, “not for the benefit of any particular tribe, band or community of Indians, and was made available for formal or informal assignment to such Indians in need of a place to live.” He said the only family to occupy the land after 1927 was the Oliver family.
After a 1983 class action lawsuit ruling, “any individual Indians (like the Olivers at Buena Vista) who were deeded rancheria lands in fee could elect to deed their fee lands back to the federal government to be held in trust,” Marino said. “They were allowed two years to make this election,” unless a formal extension was requested in court.
Marino said “descendants of the original distributees (Annie Oliver and Louie Oliver) did not elect to convey and deed the former Buena Vista rancheria land they had inherited, back to the federal government but instead elected to keep it in fee.”
Marino said “to sum up, these historical and undisputed facts establish that the 67.5 acres of land at Buena Vista are fee lands with no Indian or sovereign Indian status.”
Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Monday, 18 July 2011 06:06
“Friends of Amador” tell EPA that the Buena Vista Me-Wuk’s land status is still pending in court
Written by Tom-
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Amador County – Jerry Cassesi and his group “Friends of Amador County” earlier this month notified the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that the status of the Buena Vista Me-Wuk’s land for a tribal casino is still pending a court review.
The District of Columbia U.S. Court of Appeals in May remanded the case back to California courts. Amador County v. Kenneth Lee Salazar, Secretary of the U.S. Interior challenged that the Buena Vista tribe’s land fails to qualify as legally recognized “Indian Land.” District Court rejected a claim by the Interior that Amador County lacked standing over the land, but said a non-action approval of a gaming compact with the state was not reviewable under portions of the “Administrative Procedure Act,” according to an opinion in the ruling May 6.
Judge David S. Tatel wrote: “We agree with the district court that the County has standing, but because we conclude that the Secretary’s inaction is in fact reviewable, we reverse and remand for the district court to consider the merits in the first instance.”
Cassesi said he was concerned that the EPA, which issued a permit to discharge wastewater, was not getting appropriate, relevant information regarding the status of the land. Friends of Amador County attorney James E. Marino of Santa Barbara explained that in a July 8 letter Jo Ann Asami, Assistant Regional Counsel for EPA Region 9.
Marino said “the EPA is unaware of the status of the fee lands located at Buena Vista, in Amador County and the pending lawsuits in which the status of that land is a major issue.” Buena Vista Rancheria of Me-Wuk Indians is also being challenged in court by Bea Crabtree and June Guerry, “two descendants of the original occupying/assignees of the former rancheria before it was dissolved and dis-established from any form or class of ‘Indian Country.’”
The 67.5 acres in 1927 “was acquired by the federal government in fee as a rancheria for the use of any needy or itinerant Indian,” Marino wrote, “not for the benefit of any particular tribe, band or community of Indians, and was made available for formal or informal assignment to such Indians in need of a place to live.” He said the only family to occupy the land after 1927 was the Oliver family.
After a 1983 class action lawsuit ruling, “any individual Indians (like the Olivers at Buena Vista) who were deeded rancheria lands in fee could elect to deed their fee lands back to the federal government to be held in trust,” Marino said. “They were allowed two years to make this election,” unless a formal extension was requested in court.
Marino said “descendants of the original distributees (Annie Oliver and Louie Oliver) did not elect to convey and deed the former Buena Vista rancheria land they had inherited, back to the federal government but instead elected to keep it in fee.”
Marino said “to sum up, these historical and undisputed facts establish that the 67.5 acres of land at Buena Vista are fee lands with no Indian or sovereign Indian status.”
Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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