Free Status Report - District Court of Connecticut - Connecticut

Case 2:92-cv-00738-JBA

Document 284

Filed 09/30/2004

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT DISTRICT OF CONNECTICUT

GOLDEN HILL, ET AL Plaintiff v. WEICKER, ET AL Defendant

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CIVIL ACTION NO. 2:92CV00738(JBA)

September 28, 2004

STATUS REPORT This status report is submitted pursuant to this Court's order dated June 29, 2004. A. Status of the Case The plaintiff filed this action against innocent property owners to obtain land it claimed was part of its aboriginal territory, and other relief, pursuant to the Federal Trade and Intercourse Act, now codified as 25 U. S. C. § 177. The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit directed that the proceedings be stayed pending resolution of the plaintiff's petition for tribal acknowledgment by the Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs ("BIA") pursuant to the doctrine of primary jurisdiction. See Golden Hill Paugussett Tribe v. Weicker, 39 F. 3d 51, 58-61 (2d Cir. 1994). On June 14, 2004, the BIA issued its Final Determination on the plaintiff's petition for tribal acknowledgment, declining to acknowledge the plaintiff as an Indian tribe. This determination was based on the BIA's conclusion that the plaintiff failed to satisfy four of the seven mandatory regulatory criteria for tribal acknowledgment required by 25 C.F.R. Part 83. Notice of this determination was published in the Federal Register on June 21, 2004. 69 Fed. Reg. 34,388-34,393 (2004).

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Under the tribal acknowledgment regulations, a Final Determination becomes final ninety (90) days from the date it is published in the Federal Register unless a request for reconsideration is filed with the Interior Board of Indian Appeals (the "IBIA") within that time period. 25 C. F. R. § 83.11(a) (2). If a request for reconsideration is filed, the IBIA may (1) affirm the Final Determination; (2) vacate it and remand it to the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, ("ASIA") of the BIA for further work and reconsideration; or (3) refer the reconsideration request to the Secretary of the Interior. See 25 C. F. R. § 83.11 (e). While the request for reconsideration is pending, the Final Determination is not effective. With respect to the plaintiff, the ninety day period to file a request for reconsideration expired on September 20, 2004. On September 16, 2004, the plaintiff filed a request for reconsideration to the Board.1 Accordingly, the BIA's Final Determination will not be final and effective until the administrative appeal proceedings are complete. See 25 C. F. R. § 83.11(e) and (h). It is respectfully submitted that in accordance with the principle of primary jurisdiction, deferral by the Court until completion of the administrative appeal proceedings is warranted so that the administrative action can finish running its course, especially since the plaintiff has previously invoked the BIA's authority, and appealed the agency's decision to the IBIA. See Golden Hill Paugussett, 39 F. 3d at 60. This would be consistent with the purpose of the stay of proceedings in order to permit a determination of tribal status by the authorized administrative agency.

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The plaintiff failed to serve us a copy of its request on the State or any other interested parties, contrary to the regulatory requirements. See 43 C. F. R. §§ 4.310 (b), 4.333 (a), 25 C. F. R. § 83.11 (e) (1). 2

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B. Settlement. The State has no interest in discussing settlement, and intends to vigorously defend the plaintiff's request for reconsideration to the IBIA. C. and D. Trial Before a Magistrate Judge and Estimated Length of Trial. In view of the status of this case, paragraphs (c) and (d) of the status report format required by the Court are inapplicable and that it would be premature to address them. The State will keep the Court informed of significant developments in this matter.

Respectfully submitted, THE DEFENDANT GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF CONNECTICUT RICHARD BLUMENTHAL ATTORNEY GENERAL

BY:

_________________________________ Richard Blumenthal Attorney General Federal Bar No. ct05924 55 Elm Street P.O. Box 120 Hartford, CT 06141-0120 Tel: (860) 808-5020 Fax: (860) 808-5347 [email protected]

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CERTIFICATION

I hereby certify that a copy of the foregoing was mailed in accordance with Rule 5(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure on this 28th day of September, 2004 to: Bernard Wishnia Roseland Professional Building 204 Eagle Rock Avenue Roseland, NJ 07068 William A. Wechsler Bailey & Wechsler 10 North Main Street, Ste. 321 West Hartford, CT 06107 Alexander H. Schwartz 3695 Post Road, PO Box 701 Southport, CT 06490 David G. Chabot Gerald L. Garlick Linda Clifford Hadley Krasow, Garlick & Hadley One State Street Hartford, CT 06103 Noel E. Hanf Wiggin & Dana One Century Tower 265 Church St., PO Box 1832 New Haven, CT 06508-1832 Thomas Gugliotti Updike, Kelly & Spellacy, P.C. One State St., PO Box 231277 Hartford, CT 06123-1277 Michael D. O'Connell O'Connell, Flaherty & Attmore 280 Trumbull Street Hartford, CT 06103-3598 Richard L. Albrecht Cohen & Wolf, P.C. 1115 Broad St., PO Box 1821 Bridgeport, CT 06604 Henry C. Winiarski, Jr. 941 Wethersfield Avenue Hartford, CT 06114-3137 John J. Kelly, Jr. Cantor, Floman, Gross, Kelly, Amendola & Sacramone 378 Boston Post Road PO Box 966 Orange, CT 06477 Richard S. Lipman Union Camp Corp. Legal Dept. 1600 Valley Road Wayne, NJ 07470 Austin K. Wolf Cohen & Wolf, P.C. 1115 Broad St., PO Box 1821 Bridgeport, CT 06604

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Geoffrey A. Hecht Caplan Hecht Scanlon & Mendel 20 Trumbull St., PO Box 9505 New Haven, CT 06534 Janet L. Janczewski The Southern Connecticut Gas Co. 885 Main Street Bridgeport, CT 06604 Robert L. Berchem Richard J. Buturla Berchem, Moses & Devlin, P.C. 75 Broad Street Milford, CT 06460 Andrew M. Eschen U.S. Department of Justice Ben Franklin Station, PO Box 663 Washington, DC 20044-6208 Judith A. Mauzaka Gerald T. Weiner Weinstein, Weiner, Ignal, Vogel, & Shapiro 350 Fairfield Ave., PO Box 9177 Bridgeport, CT 06601 Stuart A. Margolis 1332 Temple Street New Haven, CT 06510 Howard R. Wolfe Goldman Gruder & Woods 125 Mason Street Greenwich, CT 06830

John Pirina, Jr. Law Offices of Arnaldo J. Sierra 215 Washington Street Hartford, CT 06106 John B. Hughes U.S. Attorney's Office of the Attorney General 157 Church Street, 23rd Floor, PO Box 1824 New Haven, CT 06510 James A. Trowbridge Quinnipiac College Law School Clinic 275 Mount Carmel Ave. Hamden, CT 06518-1946 Kimball Haines Hunt Hunt, Leibert, Chester & Jacobson, P.C. 50 Weston Street Hartford, CT 06120-4626 Mark T. Anastasi City of Bridgeport Office of the City Attorney 999 Broad Street, 2nd Floor Bridgeport, CT 06604-4328 Thomas E. Behuniak 44 Greenwood Circle Seymore, CT 06483 Michael Stanton Hillis Dombroski, Knapsack & Hillis 129 Whitney Avenue New haven, CT 06510

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Kenneth M. Rozich Law Firm of Edward D. Jacobs PO Box 1952 New Haven, CT 06509 Anthony M. Feeherry Goodwin, Procter & Hoar Exchange Place, 2nd Floor Boston, MA 02109-2881

Paul Ruszczyk Highland Professional Center 408 Highland Avenue Cheshire, CT 06410

______________________________ Susan Quinn Cobb Attorney General

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