Make it so!
Posted on 09/03/2002 6:03:39 AM PDT by Pharmboy
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - More than six years after the discovery of one of the oldest skeletons ever found in North America, a federal judge overturned a decision to give the bones to Indian tribes for reburial and ruled that scientists can keep them for more study.
U.S. Magistrate John Jelderks said he reviewed 20,000 pages of documents before concluding that "nothing I have found in a careful examination of the administrative record" supported the government's decision to give the bones to the tribes.
Scientific study of the ancient skeleton will benefit all people, including tribes, by offering clues to early migration and culture, said plaintiff Robson Bonnichsen, formerly director of the Center for the Study of the First Americans at Oregon State University.
"Without studying it we'll never know about these early populations," said Bonnichsen, who is now at Texas A&M.
Bonnichsen was one of eight scientists who sued soon after the 9,300-year-old skeleton was discovered in July 1996 in Kennewick, Wash.
The scientists said it was extremely rare to find a nearly intact skeleton so old. Initial analysis also indicated it differed from modern Indian tribes, prompting speculation about whether it supported theories such as several waves of migration from different parts of Asia to populate North America.
Alan Schneider, a lawyer representing the scientists, said the ruling should set a precedent for dealing with archaeological discoveries. He said the scientists were prepared to take the case "all the way to the Supreme Court" if the government decides to appeal.
Justice Department ( news - web sites) spokesman Dana Perino said government attorneys would have to review the ruling before they could comment.
The judge also criticized former Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt and the Army Corps of Engineers for the way they handled the case.
Jelderks wrote that the federal government "failed to consider all the relevant factors, had acted before it had all of the evidence, had failed to fully consider legal questions, had assumed facts that proved to be erroneous, had failed to articulate a satisfactory explanation for its action, had followed a 'flawed' procedure, and had prematurely decided the issue."
Babbitt backed the Corps of Engineers, which manages Columbia River navigation, saying the remains were culturally affiliated with Northwest tribes because they had an oral tradition of history in the general geographic area where the bones were found.
Babbitt said he was acting under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act of 1990, a law intended to prevent theft and illegal trafficking of Indian artifacts, protect tribal burial sites and restore the remains of ancestors to the tribes.
The scientists argued that no group could establish a direct link to the bones under the terms of the law.
The scientists emphasized their legal fight was against the government's interpretation of the law, not tribal tradition.
"I'm sure Native Americans see it differently, but this suit was against the government, not the Indian tribes," said anthropologist Richard Jantz at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, one of the eight scientists.
But they'll probably just Sioux again, until they win.
Make it so!
The judge also criticized former Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt and the Army Corps of Engineers for the way they handled the case.
Babbitt used a VERY liberal interpretation of the Indian Graves act in making his decision (DUH---it WAS Babbitt afterall).
I actually hope that the DOJ will drop this case now. A decision will probably not be made until they analyze their 'liability exposure' under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act of 1990, a law intended to prevent theft and illegal trafficking of Indian artifacts, protect tribal burial sites and restore the remains of ancestors to the tribes.
To US it is a no-brainer.
Bonnichsen was one of eight scientists who sued soon after the 9,300-year-old skeleton was discovered in July 1996 in Kennewick, Wash.
There was as many tribal indians in the Americas 9,300 years ago as there were Vietnamese and Swiss.
6 years! DUH
Notice that in his decision, the Magistrate finds rampant prejudice and disonesty in the Department of the Interior under Bruce Babbitt. Babbitt came into the Clinton Adminstration with a reputation for strict honesty. He left it as a criminal who would lie to protect his dishonest bosses, and turn his Department upside down to do whatever his bosses commanded.
Of course, he was an unindicted criminal, since Janet ("the Just") Reno was then the Attorney General. Whatever happened to "Shaky" Janet? I haven't heard a word about her since she hung up her spurs as a burner and kidnapper of children, defender of the Clintons (him and her), and a general credit to her sex (whatever that may be).
Congressman Billybob
Billybob
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.