Eighth Circuit Court Calls Lawsuit Against Oglala Sioux Officials Frivolous Story-Date: 10:29 a.m. PST Sunday , December 14, 1997 ------------------------------------------------------------ Eighth Circuit Court Calls Lawsuit Against Oglala Sioux Officials Frivolous By David Rooks, Indian Country Today, Rapid City, S.D. Knight-Ridder/Tribune Business News RAPID CITY, S.D.--Dec. 15--On Dec. 8, in a decision apparently exhausting a long string of litigious motions filed by former OST Tribal Attorney Mario Gonzalez, the Eighth Circuit Court of appeals ruled against Mr. Gonzalez. The Eighth Circuit unanimously said, "The procedural issues raised by Gonzalez are frivolous and his substantive claims under RICO and the Privacy Act are totally without merit." Attorney Charles Abourezk, representing former Oglala Sioux Tribal President Wilbur Between Lodges, one of thirteen defendants in the lawsuit, said, "We have argued all along that this was a frivolous lawsuit, totally without merit." Mr. Abourezk wrote the brief and presented oral arguments on behalf of the tribal defendants before the Court of Appeals. When Mr. Gonzalez was contacted by Indian Country Today for his reaction to the Court's judgment he had been unaware of the decision. Mr Gonzalez's initial reaction was dismay at the judgement; he then immediately referred all questions to his attorney, Sidney Flores of San Jose, Calif. Mr. Flores said, "Our position on behalf of Mario is we're going to weigh our options at this time. "We further feel that Mr. Gonzalez has been denied due process due to the position's of both courts not addressing procedural issues that denied Mr. Gonzalez the opportunity to have a judge and jury weigh the evidence." Mr. Abourezk, satisfied with the decision, said, "Unfortunately, in the process of all the headlines created by Mr. Gonzalez, the Oglala Sioux Tribe had its reputation smeared; largely because the public was led to believe that the entire Oglala Sioux Tribal government was filled with racketeers. This decision vindicates Mr. Between Lodges, Gerald Clifford, Marvin Amiotte, and the remaining individual tribal defendants, as well as the the Oglala Sioux Tribal government itself." In the decision handed down on Dec. 5, the appeals court ruled in favor of several present and former tribal officials, including past president Wilbur Between Lodges. Mr. Between Lodges now serves as the tribes Fifth Member. The Court's decision affirmed a previous ruling in favor of tribal officials and the Bureau of Reclamation by U.S. District Judge Richard Battey. Mr. Gonzales was fired as an attorney for the Oglala Sioux Rural Water Supply System in August of 1995. Mr. Gonzalez then filed a lawsuit in federal court claiming that several former and present tribal officials had conspired against him in violation of the civil RICO (Racketeering Act) laws, and that the United States Bureau of Reclamation had violated the privacy act. The other individual tribal defendants named in the lawsuit included Gerald Big Crow, Marlin "Moon" Weston, Manuel Foolhead, Archie Hopkins, David Pourier, Chuck Jacobs, William Jumping Eagle, Duane Brewer, and G. Wayne Tapio. The lawsuit was filed by Mr. Gonzalez in August of 1995 after he threatened tribal officials with an action in federal court if they discussed his attorney billing submitted to the tribe for payment. Attorney Abourezk said, "The Oglala Sioux Tribal Council was required to discuss the bill because it would have to come out of the tribe's general fund. They did so during a meeting which was broadcast over KILI Radio. Gonzalez then submitted his resignation." However, the Tribal Council, under advice given by Tribal Attorney Marvin Amiotte, chose instead to adopt a resolution effectively firing Mr. Gonzalez, and giving him 60 days notice of termination of his contract with Oglala Sioux Rural Water system. Gerald Big Crow, a defendant in the lawsuit was a Tribal Council member when Mr. Gonzalez was fired. Mr. Big Crow said, "Back then Mario Gonzalez made repeated threats about filing lawsuits against the tribe. He did this during a Tribal Council Meeting broadcast live on KILI Radio. He also made threats in several council meetings before this. "Finally, I felt we'd heard enough of his threats and accusations. We on the council decided we couldn't have a consultant to the tribe constantly threatening to sue us, so I made a motion to terminate Mr. Gonzalez' contract. This was done legally and according to Tribal procedures." ----- Visit Indian Country Today on the World Wide Web at http://www.indiancountry.com/ ----- (c) 1997, Indian Country Today, Rapid City, S.D. Distributed by Knight-Ridder/Tribune Business News. ------------------------------------------------------------