Federal Court Judge David Winder has taken under advisement motions to dismiss a civil- rights lawsuit filed against Ute Business Committee Chairman Stewart Pike and several others.
During a 35-minute hearing last week in U.S. District Court in Salt Lake City, defense attorney Robert O. Rice argued that plaintiffs Lupe M. Duncan, Cecelia Jenks and Shirleta LaFramboise failed to exhaust their remedies in Ute Tribal Court before filing the civil-rights action in federal court.The case was originally filed in tribal court but was dismissed with prejudice by Tribal Court Judge George Tahbone. Under terms of the dismissal the plaintiffs were given the option of refiling the civil rights allegations within 10 days. However, because of an apparent lack of paperwork by the defendants, the plaintiffs maintained they were unable to refile.
Rice also argued the federal court lacks jurisdiction in the case because long-standing principles allow the Ute Tribe sovereign immunity in such matters.
Pike, along with business committee members Wendell Navanik, Ronald Wopsock, Floyd Wopsock, non-tribal member Janet Cuch and tribal members Colene Black, Shere L. Cesspooch, Deanna Jack, Lorna S. Jenks, Maxine Manning, Randy McCook Sr., Crystal Moriarty and Joan J. Perank were named in the lawsuit.
All 13 are accused by the three plaintiffs of conspiring to coerce 30 people to remove their names from a petition seeking Pike's recall from office.
The plaintiffs are members of the Uncompahgre Band of the Ute Indian Tribe. Pike is one of two elected Uncompahgre Band representatives. The recall petition did not state the reason behind the move to oust Pike for office.
E. Guyon, attorney for the plaintiffs, argued that the case before the judge involved a single band, and not the Ute Indian Tribe as such, and therefore was filed in the proper court. The three bands that form the tribe include the Uncompahgre, Whiteriver and Uintah. Native Americans from all three bands were collectively moved to the reservation in the early 1900s. It wasn't until the Ute Constitution was written in 1934 that individual band members were recognized as members of the Ute Tribe as it is known today.