Winegrape growing has a long history in Lake County. Photo courtesy of the Lake County Winery Association.

In commemoration of the 150^th anniversary of the founding of Lake County this year, Lake County News is publishing a series of historical stories about the county, its people and places. In this week's story, the focus is the county's long history of winegrape growing and winemaking.

Friday, May 20, 2011, marked Lake County’s sesquicentennial anniversary – 150 years since its establishment as a California county.

Lake County has a long history of fascinating stories – stories of a pioneering spirit and entrepreneurship, of agriculture traditions and preservation, of heroes and visionaries, and of a thriving pre-Prohibition wine industry.

In 1884, Lake County boasted 600 acres of wine grapes. Vineyards were established by notable arrivals to the county such as Seranus C. Hastings, founder of Hastings Law School, and Lillie Langtry, a colorful theater star in Europe and America.

Lillie Langtry, purchased the Langtry property in the Guenoc Valley in 1888. The property’s wine history dates back to 1854 when grapes were first planted at the site.

The famed actress claimed that the property would produce the “greatest claret in the country,” and she proceeded to produce the finest Bordeaux wines in the region.

Rumor has it that one of California’s oldest vines continues to grow on the Langtry Estate at the top of Tephra Ridge. It is thought to be part of Mrs. Langtry’s original vineyard.

Professor Ohmo of UC Davis, one of the world’s experts on viticulture – now deceased – came across the vine some years ago, smiled and said, “This is one of the oldest vines in California and I think it is a Syrah.”

Being a lady of the theater from the city and thereby a landlady in absentia of the Langtry Estate, Mrs. Langtry sold the property in 1906 just after the “big one,” the massive earthquake that devastated San Francisco.

The Lillie Langtry House still stands today, overlooking the property and welcoming guest to its door. Built in 1874, this two-story Folk Victorian has been restored and is often a place of hospitality for visitors to the Langtry Estate.

The Lillie Langtry House near Middletown, Calif., once was home to the famed British actress. Photo courtesy of the Lake County Winery Association.

To commemorate the 150-year anniversary of Lake County, the Lillie Langtry House will be open for tours, when it is not housing the guests of the estate now owned by Malulani Investments, which acquired the 22,000 acre property in 1963. Contact Langtry Estate & Vineyards at www.langtryestate.com or 707-987-2385 for more tour information.

On Saturday, Nov. 5, the Lake County Winery Association will host the People’s Choice Wine Awards at Langtry Estate and Vineyard from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. This event is the premier consumer wine competition event showcasing the finest Lake County wines. It is a fun and informative blind tasting where the ‘people’ determine the final winners of the competition.

In honor of Lake County’s Sesquicentennial celebration, the People’s Choice Wine Awards will include tours of the Langtry home.

Other Lake County wineries offering a glimpse into their fascinating history and agricultural traditions include the following.

Six Sigma Ranch, Vineyard and Winery will offer a one-hour Pinzgauer historical tour of the ranch and homesteads. For time, cost, and reservations contact Six Sigma Ranch at www.sixsigmaranch.com or 707-994-4068.

Brassfield Estate Winery invites you to visit the original 150-year-old farmhouse at the Brassfield High Serenity Ranch. To schedule a self-guided tour, contact Brassfield Estate at www.brasfieldestate.com or 707-998-1895.

The owners of Wildhurst Vineyard, Marilyn and Myron Holdenried, have a wealth of historical information to share with anyone who asks. Stop by the Wildhurst tasting room in Kelseyville for 150th celebration tidbits. www.wildhurst.com or 707-279-4302.

The Lake County Winery Association (LCWA) is proud to support and participate in Lake County’s 150th Sesquicentennial Celebration.

The Lake County Wine Adventure, the winery association’s annual signature event, is scheduled for July 30-31 and will proudly feature the 150th logo on the event’s recyclable four-bottle wine bags.

The Lake County Winery Association is a nonprofit organization founded in 2007 by a dozen wineries. Today, LCWA serves over 40 vintners and associate members who share a mission to promote awareness of Lake County’s excellent wine industry, high elevation wines and tourism opportunities.

Through partnerships with the County of Lake, Lake County Chamber of Commerce, Clear Lake Chamber of Commerce, Lake County Winegrape Commission, Lake County Farm Bureau, and others, LCWA strives to promote the County’s unique and distinct rural attributes – our lake, our mountain, our air, and our land. LCWA is committed to sustainable farming and winery operation practices and is committed to our community and its members.

To learn more about LCWA, visit www.lakecountywineries.org or call 707-355-2762.

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A winegrape vine believed to be the oldest in Lake County, Calif., grows on the Langtry Estate at the top of Tephra Ridge near Middletown, Calif. The vine is believed to have been part of Lillie Langtry's Langtry

Those arrested were 44-year-old Lisa Renee Berry of Kelseyville, 46-year-old Lana Doreen Hazen of Lucerne and 58-year-old Johanna Maria Orr of Lucerne, according to Capt. James Bauman of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.

On Friday, June 3, narcotics detectives were conducting surveillance operations in Lucerne, Bauman said. At approximately 3 p.m. detectives observed a purple Pontiac coupe occupied by three women make an unlawful turning movement from Country Club Drive onto 12th Avenue.

Bauman said detectives stopped the Pontiac and identified the occupants as Berry, Hazen and Orr.

When narcotics detectives contacted the three women, all three allegedly displayed symptoms of being under the influence of a controlled substance, Bauman said.

While the three were being detained for further examination, a narcotics interdiction K-9 team arrived to assist. Bauman said the narcotics detection dog was led to the vehicle and alerted on the vehicle’s trunk and on the passenger side of the back seat where Hazen had been seated.

A subsequent search of the vehicle revealed a quantity of rock cocaine on the back floorboard of the car and several bags of marijuana in the trunk, Bauman said.

Bauman said all three women were arrested. As Berry was being escorted to a sheriff’s cruiser, she divulged that she had a bag of methamphetamine concealed in her bra and was allowed to retrieve the bag for detectives.

All three women were transported to the Lake County Hill Road Correctional Facility for booking, Bauman said.

Lisa Berry was charged with possession of a controlled substance, transportation of a controlled substance, possession of marijuana and being under the influence of a controlled substance, with bail set at $15,000.

Hazen was charged with possession of a controlled substance and being under the influence of a controlled substance, with bail set at $10,000.

Orr was charged with being under the influence of a controlled substance. Her bail was not listed early Saturday.

All three remained in custody early Saturday, according to online booking sheets.

The Sheriff’s Narcotics Task Force can be contacted through its anonymous tip line at 707-263-3663.

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A fundraiser will be held on Saturday, June 4, 2011, during Wild West Day in Upper Lake, Calif., to benefit 4-year-old Jenni Rivera-Cervantes. Courtesy photo.

UPPER LAKE, Calif. – A fundraiser will be held at this weekend's Wild West Day in Upper Lake to benefit a seriously ill local child.

Missy Hill is organizing a raffle in front of Nor Cal Moto & Speed Equipment on Main Street on Saturday, June 4, to benefit 4-year-old Jenni Rivera-Cervantes of Upper Lake.

The girl recently was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, and due to her illness had to stop attending Upper Lake Head Start.

Her family takes her to Children's Hospital & Research Center Oakland for chemotherapy treatments.

Jenni is reportedly responding very well to chemotherapy, which she's scheduled to have for two years.

She loves Oreo cookies, Dora the Explorer and ponies.

Hill said she will be selling tickets from 9 a.m. until the drawing at 3 p.m. It's hoped that Jenni will be able to be there to draw the winning tickets.

Raffle prizes include one cord of oak/madrone firewood – free delivery in Upper Lake, Nice, Lucerne and north Lakeport – donated by the Hill family; one night's stay at the Tallman Hotel; and a $60 meat certificate from Lakeview Supermarket & Deli.

The proceeds will go into an account set up for Jenni at Westamerica Bank.

It's not too late to donate more items for the raffle.

For more information call Missy Hill at 707-349-3307.

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A Martian sunset photographed by Spirit on May 19, 2005. Photo courtesy of NASA.

The Voyagers are, perhaps, the best known example. Launched in the 1970s to explore the outer planets, the iconic spacecraft have zoomed far beyond their original targets to the edge of interstellar space itself, 9 billion miles from Earth and still making discoveries.

Pioneer 10 and 11, Ulysses, Stardust-NEXT, Deep Impact, and others have similar track records. It has become almost routine for superbly-engineered probes to wrap up their prime missions, then travel a few million (or billion) bonus miles for extra science.

Against this backdrop of sweeping overachievement, we pause to salute a robot that might never move another inch.

Well done, Spirit.

“For the past seven years, Spirit has been on a journey as extraordinary as any mission in NASA history,” said Mars Exploration Rover project manager John Callas of JPL. “But now it may be time to say thanks and farewell.”

NASA hasn't heard from Spirit in more than a year, and on May 25 the agency sent a final transmission in its series of attempts to regain contact.

The trouble began in April 2009 when the rover trundled into a sandtrap in a place called “Troy,” breaking through an apparently safe crust into soft sand below.

Stuck in place, Spirit couldn't turn its solar panels squarely toward the sun; at the same time, dust accumulated on the panels, reducing sunlight even more. These impediments curtailed power just when Spirit needed power most, during the deep freeze of an approaching Martian winter.

The Comanche Outcrop on Mars suggests a hospitable environment for life in the distant past. Photo courtesy of NASA.

“Where Spirit is, winter temperatures drop as low as -130 C, far colder than any place on Earth,” said Callas. “Without sufficient electricity to power internal heaters and warm critical systems, Spirit went into hibernation.”

NASA has used Deep Space Network antennas and two of the agency's Mars orbiters to try to reestablish contact – but no luck.

Whether the rover is damaged or merely “sleeping,” no one can say, but most engineers believe the possibility of contact is now extremely remote.

Spirit landed on Mars on Jan. 4, 2004, for a mission designed to last merely three months.

After quickly accomplishing its primary science goals, the rover went on to work for almost six more years.

In all, Spirit has traveled almost eight kilometers, explored several large craters, scrutinized thousands of rocks, scraped off topsoil to reveal hidden minerals, photographed Martian dust devils and sunsets, observed the moons of Mars, and took the first picture of Earth in the night sky of another planet. Bonus-time, indeed.

This may be the last thing that Spirit ever saw

Charles Thomas Jones was returned to prison after Judge Andrew Blum denied a second attempt to suppress evidence, according to Deputy District Attorney Susan Krones.

Jones was represented by J. David Markham who took over the case after the death of Jones’ previous attorney, Stephen Tulanian.

Jones originally was sentenced on Nov. 16, 2007, to 10 years in prison for a felony charges of transportation of methamphetamine and possession of methamphetamine) on a separate date, Krones said.

Jones also had a prior strike conviction as well as a prior prison term that resulted in a total prison term of 10 years, she said.

Krones said the First Appellate District Court remanded the case back to Lake County for a new motion to suppress evidence hearing. The hearing was held before the Judge Blum on April 27 and May 3.

During the hearing Sonoma County Deputy Greg Piccinini, previously with the Clearlake Police Department, testified that on Feb. 26, 2006, he saw Jones fail to make a complete stop at a stop sign, Krones said. As a result, he initiated a traffic stop that eventually led to the recovery of 40 grams of methamphetamine concealed on Jones’ person.

In making his ruling Judge Blum indicated that he found Deputy Piccinini’s testimony as to what he saw very credible. On the other hand, he was not persuaded by Jones’ testimony, nor that of the witnesses Jones produced.

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The 3,000-square-foot lodge at Four Springs Retreat, located outside of Middletown, burned Monday night, as Lake County News has reported.

The building at the 55-year-old resort was valued at about $800,000, according to fire officials.

Cal Fire said that its investigator from the Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit concluded the inquiry into the cause and origin of the retreat's fire on Wednesday.

The investigation found that on midday Monday, the fire pit's ashes were improperly disposed of, with someone placing the ashes into a plastic bag, then placing the plastic bag into a cardboard box next to the structure.

Cal Fire Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit Chief Tim Streblow recalled the phrase “can your ashes” from when he began his career with the department. The slogan reminds residents to carry out proper ash debris disposal.

Hot coals, hidden in a pile of ashes, are well insulated and can stay hot for many days, officials said.

They said that ashes should never be emptied into a paper or plastic bag, cardboard box or similar container.

When disposing of ashes from a fireplace, wood stove, fire pit or barbecue, Cal Fire said ashes should be stored in a noncombustible metal container with an air tight seal. After adding ash to the bucket, pour water in the bucket to extinguish any hot coals. Place lid on container tightly.

In addition, they ash buckets should be stored in a safe location away from flammable materials – buildings and decks – just in case stray cinders escape.

“The department’s goal is to prevent fires and we ask residents for their help to bring us closer to success,” Streblow said.

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The body of 37-year-old William Kim was located Saturday morning, according to a report from Mendocino County Sheriff's Lt. Dennis Bushnell.

On May 28 Kim was abalone diving in the area of Mitchell Creek near Fort Bragg when he and another diver were caught up in the breaking surf, officials reported. A third diver went for help and a boat responded, saving the second diver but Kim was washed away.

Shortly after 9 a.m. Saturday approximately 30 of Kim's friends and family began searching for his body, Bushnell said.

Bushnell said many of the divers in the group searching for him were prior Republic of Korea Marines and were all very experienced divers.

He said Kim's body was located within 100 yards of where he was last seen.

Bushnell said a final ruling on Kim's cause of death is pending an autopsy.

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“Carbon monoxide is a silent killer, each year claiming the lives of an average of 480 people,” said acting State Fire Marshal Tonya Hoover. “And sending more than 20,000 people to emergency rooms across the nation.”

Carbon monoxide, or CO, is a colorless, odorless gas that is produced from heaters, fireplaces, furnaces and many types of appliances and cooking devices.

The best way for homeowners to stay protected from carbon monoxide is to have a carbon monoxide detector installed on every floor and outside each sleeping area, Cal Fire said.

A recent study found that nearly nine in 10 California households did not have a carbon monoxide detector.

“Having a carbon monoxide detector is a small investment that really can help save your life and the lives of your family,” said Chief Hoover.

To help educate homeowners about the new law and to encourage them to install a carbon monoxide detector, Cal Fire/Office of the State Fire Marshal is teaming up with fire departments across the state, the Home Safety Council, First Alert and Lowe’s to host “CO Saturday” on June 4.

“CO Saturday” will be a special day-long safety celebration to teach families how to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning.

Though previous laws only required newly-constructed homes to have carbon monoxide alarms, the state’s new Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Prevention Act (Senate Bill 183) requires owners of all existing single-family homes with an attached garage or a fossil fuel source to install carbon monoxide alarm devices within the home by July 1, 2011.

Owners of multifamily leased or rental dwellings, such as apartment buildings, have until Jan. 1, 2013,

to comply with the law.

For more information on how to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning visit the Cal Fire Web site at www.fire.ca.gov.

For more information on “CO Saturday,” please visit www.homesafetycouncil.org.

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On May 26, the Board of Parole Hearings denied parole for convicted murderer Timothy John Connors, 64.

Lake County Chief Deputy District Attorney Richard Hinchcliff, who prosecuted Connors in the case, attended the lifer hearing at the Mule Creek State Prison in Ione to argue against Connors’ release.

Connors, who was represented by defense attorney Judy Conard, was convicted of the second-degree murder of his girlfriend, Nina Estagin Rolih. He was sentenced by Lake County Superior Court Judge David Herrick to 16 years to life on Dec. 28, 1998.

His minimum eligible parole date was July 12, 2012, Hinchcliff reported.

On April 10, 1997, Clearlake Police Department received a 911 call that Rolih, who was living with Connors, had been hit and killed by a truck. When officers arrived at 3527 Monroe St. they found Rolih’s body under some debris and a blanket next to the roadway, according to case records.

Upon further investigation by Clearlake Police Investigator Ron Larsen, who is now retired, it was determined that Connors had cut Rolih’s throat with a butcher knife inside the residence, loaded her body in a garbage can, wheeled her down the driveway, dumped her at the end of the driveway, and partially covered the body.

Investigators also determined the murder took place a day and a half before Rolih's death was reported.

Connors gave investigators a detailed story about how some guys in a big black truck were racing up and down the street at night and hit Rolih, killing her.

After officers told Connors they did not believe the story, he claimed he acted in self defense and had to kill her when she attacked him in a drunken rage.

At trial, which lasted six weeks, Connors claimed self defense and further claimed that because of extreme intoxication at the time he could not have formed the intent to kill her.

The prosecution pointed out that he went to great lengths to hide the crime and set up a defense for someone who claimed not to know what they were doing.

At trial Hinchcliff also put on evidence of prior domestic violence, including evidence that Connors had previously threatened to kill Rolih and that he had stabbed her several times with a knife while intoxicated in 1996.

At the two-hour hearing May 26, Hinchcliff asked the Board of Prison Hearings to deny Connors parole on the ground that he still presented an unreasonable risk of danger to the public, especially females, if released, and failed to exhibit any remorse or accept responsibility for his conduct.

Connors has also had disciplinary problems while in prison and failed to address his chronic alcoholism or domestic violence problems, Hinchcliff said.

Hinchcliff also asked the commissioners for a lengthy parole denial for the reason that it would be unrealistic to expect Connors to be ready for parole at any time in the near future.

The Board of Parole Hearings agreed with that assessment and denied parole for the maximum allowable time of 15 years.

Connors’ next scheduled parole hearing will be in 2026.

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Clearlake Police officers arrested Joshua Smith on Friday, June 3, 2011. Police had been searching for Smith, Clearlake's most wanted suspect, for several weeks based on several incidents and warrants. Lake County Jail photo.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – A man who had been listed as “Clearlake's most wanted” has been arrested after officers found him hiding under a house.

Clearlake Police officers arrested Joshua Gordon Smith, 28, at around 5 p.m. Friday at a Clearlake home, according to a report from Sgt. Tim Celli.

Celli said police have been searching for Smith – recently featured as Clearlake’s most wanted suspect – for several weeks, with officers attempting to locate him at various residences around the city.

Police had received information from confidential sources that Smith was residing in the county areas of Lower Lake and Middletown but the information was unable to be confirmed, Celli said.

However, police got a break on Friday, when they received information that Smith was at a residence located at 15890 28th Ave., Celli said.

Celli said he, along with Sgt. Tim Hobbs and Sgt. Martin Snyder, and Officers Winslow and Lenz, responded to the 28th Avenue residence.

Officers searched the residence and eventually located a large makeshift hole in the floor located in a corner of the master bedroom leading under the house, he said. The hole was haphazardly covered by a rug.

Celli said he and his fellow officers searched the area and located Smith hiding under the house. Smith was taken into custody without further incident.

He said Smith was arrested for several outstanding warrants including a felony warrant, stemming from a case in which Smith allegedly broke into a residence and was confronted by the resident. Smith allegedly attacked the owner after being confronted.

Smith also faces charges of allegedly making terrorist threats to his girlfriend while armed with a knife and then leading police on a high speed pursuit, which Celli said led to an officer being injured after a collision with a tree.

Smith has been booked at Lake County Jail where he remained in custody early Saturday with bail set at $50,000.

The Clearlake Police Department thanked everyone who came forward for the assistance provided, which eventually led to the capture of Smith, who police called a “dangerous fugitive.”

The agency reminded citizens that with the community's help and working in partnership with the police a difference can be made.

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Thomas Lee Carter, 59, of Upper Lake has reached a plea agreement with the US Attorney's Office, according to federal court documents.

Case documents show that on May 9, Carter made an appearance before Judge Jeffrey S. White in the U.S. District Court's Northern District of California in San Francisco.

There, Carter was placed on the witness stand and entered a guilty plea to one count of distributing or possessing with intent to distribute marijuana. The court accepted the plea and ordered the filing of a plea agreement.

According to federal documents, that charge carries a five-year minimum and 40-year maximum prison sentence and a $2 million fine. Supervised release terms range between a minimum of four years and a lifetime maximum.

Carter's federal public defender, Geoffrey Hansen, did not return calls seeking comment.

Sentencing has been scheduled for Oct. 6 in San Francisco.

In advance of the October sentencing date, the court ordered that Carter's case go to the US Probation Office for a presentencing report.

Carter had previously pleaded not guilty to two counts of distributing or possessing with intent to distribute marijuana plus a charge of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute marijuana. The latter charge carries a minimum 10-year sentence and $4 million fine.

Carter was arrested in August 2009 along with Brett Bassignani of Nice, who worked for Carter's contracting business.

Drug Enforcement Administration agents alleged Bassignani had agreed to sell 500 marijuana clones to two undercover agents and an informant in May 2006. The DEA had alleged Carter had been privy to the transaction.

The DEA also alleged that in August 2009 Carter had possessed with intent to distribute 100 or more marijuana plants.

The government would link the two men to several other people who were alleged to have been part of a marijuana distribution operation.

The other codefendants – all of them connected with medical marijuana dispensaries on the North Coast and in Southern California – included Scott and Diana Feil of Upper Lake and Redwood Valley; and Diana Feil's stepfather, Steven Swanson of Sebastopol. Later, yet another defendant, Mark Garcia of San Diego, was added to the case in a superseding indictment.

As part of the case, the federal government has sought millions of dollars in asset forfeiture from the group of defendants.

Court documents state that the defendants recently have reached a “global agreement” to resolve the case.

As a result, some of Carter's codefendants also have gone to court to change their pleas.

On May 26, Garcia went before Judge White and pleaded guilty to a count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana, with sentencing set for Oct. 27. The charge carries a minimum five-year sentence and $2 million fine.

On Wednesday, Swanson also went before Judge White to enter a change of plea, pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana, with case documents stating that prison time ranges between a 10-year minimum and lifetime maximum, and a $4 million fine, and a minimum five-year and maximum lifetime supervised release.

Swanson also pleaded guilty to tax evasion, which carries a five-year prison sentence, three years of supervised release and $100,000 fine plus costs of prosecution.

His judgment and sentencing is set for Nov. 3.

The Feils also have reportedly reached an agreement “in principle” with the proposed agreement still being finalized, according to a May 26 filing.

Scott Feil's attorney, Charles Lindner of Santa Monica, did not respond to a request for comment on the case.

The latest filings did not mention any scheduled dates or any plea agreements specifically related to Bassignani.

White approved an order continuing matters in the case until June 23 at the request of the defendants.

Carter remains out on $200,000 bond, secured by one of his Upper Lake properties, until his October sentencing.

Stipulations of his release require him to stay in the Northern District unless traveling for work or family reasons to the Eastern District, with advance notification to the supervising pretrial services officer required.

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The protesters, representing tribes from throughout Indian Country, issued a statement in which they decried actions taken by tribal officials in violation of tribal and federal laws.

Several protestors had made formal requests to meet with Assistant Secretary Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk, who was scheduled to attend the forum.

Assistant Secretary Echo Hawk is charged with carrying out the Department of Interior’s trust responsibilities to tribes and individual Indians.

The protestors wanted an opportunity to discuss the problems of corruption and rights violation in Indian Country and question him on the actions the department would take to uphold its trust responsibility to the thousands of individual Indians who have been victimized by tribal leaders.

To date, the department, through the Bureau of Indian Affairs, has declined to intervene and allowed tribal leaders to continually terrorize targeted individuals and groups unless the tribe's governing documents allow BIA intervention

Assistant Secretary Echo Hawk failed to respond to the numerous requests, and when several protestors attempted to enter the forum, they were confronted by individuals claiming to be the assistant secretary’s bodyguards. The protestors were questioned by the bodyguards and asked to provide proof of their identification, but they were not allowed to meet with the assistant secretary.

A small group of protestors was eventually allowed to meet with BIA Pacific Regional Director Amy Dutschke and Superintendent Robert Eben of the Southern California Agency.

The BIA representatives listened to the individuals concerns regarding corruption and rights violations in Indian Country.

Regional Director Dutschke did inform those she met with that sanctions could be levied against offending officials and tribal governments and promised to take the issue to Echo Hawk.

The BIA is not the only forum that has declined to intervene in matters considered internal to the tribes. The courts have almost always declined to hear cases involving internal tribal matters.

Tribes and tribal officials accused of violating tribal and federal laws – such as the Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968 – have routinely claimed that their actions are cloaked by sovereign immunity and beyond the jurisdiction of the courts.

In a recent case involving the Snoqualmie Tribe of Washington State, a federal judge ruled that tribal leaders had illegally banished members of the tribe. In spite of the court's ruling, the Snoqualmie tribal council has failed to comply with the decision and continues to cite sovereign immunity as justification for their unlawful actions. The illegally banished members are now being subject to disenrollment, against the wishes of their tribal members, by the very same tribal officials.

A contingent of the banished Snoqualmie Tribal members traveled over the course of several days to join representatives from several California tribes, Oklahoma, and Arizona. The Snoqualmie and others believe it is important that tribal leaders and federal officials begin to understand the breadth and impact of human and civil rights violations in Indian Country.

“In the past decade, thousands of Indians throughout the United States have been the victims of gross human and civil rights violation,” said John Gomez Jr., a founding member of the American Indian Rights and Resources Organization.

“The rise in the number of crimes committed by tribal officials against individual Indians appears to coincide with the expansion of Indian gaming,” Gomez said. “Greed and the desire to maintain control of businesses that bring in millions, sometimes hundreds of millions, of dollars are motivating factors to get rid of opposing factions within the tribe and deny membership to those who would share in any profits.”

He added, “As long as tribal officials can continue to escape prosecution for their illegal acts by invoking immunity from suit, such crimes will continue unabated. Many more will be banished; disenrolled; denied membership; denied voting rights and medical services; and stripped of the rights guaranteed by tribal and federal laws.”

Congress enacted the Indian Civil Rights Act in 1968 in response to claims made by individual Indians that tribal officials were violating basic human and civil rights. The ICRA provides that tribes and tribal officials are barred from denying individuals rights such as due process and equal protection of laws. Unfortunately the ICRA failed to include an effective enforcement mechanism by which tribal officials could be held accountable for violations of its provisions.

Those who gathered at the protest agreed that tribal officials must be held accountable for their actions.

A means to accomplish this goal would be to amend the ICRA and provide for the prosecution of tribal officials for any violations of the actions prohibited in the law.

While such an action would be seen by tribes as an infringement on their sovereignty, those who have already been victimized do not believe that sovereignty should protect criminals or provide an environment where crimes can and will continue.

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