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Monday, August 4, 2003

Two tribes filed suit on Friday against the federal government, seeking an accounting of their trust funds.

The Santee Sioux Tribe of Nebraska and the Yankton Sioux Tribe of South Dakota want an accounting of activity that occurred in their lands. They also seek an accounting of any land sales.

The cases were filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. The tribes are asking to be assigned to Judge Royce Lamberth, citing a relation to the Cobell case.

Lamberth is already handling several other tribal trust lawsuits. Last July, he rejected a Bush administration motion to assign the cases randomly. Most of the cases are currently in negotiation.

The defendants in the Santee Sioux and the Yankton Sioux cases are the Department of Interior and Department of Treasury.

Get the Story:
Tribes sue government over sale, leasing of lands (AP 8/2)

Relevant Documents:
Santee Sioux Complaint (July 28, 2003) | Yankton Sioux Complaint (July 28, 2003)

Related Stories:
Judge advances Osage Nation trust suit (7/31)
Judge upholds ongoing trust relationship (04/29)
Bush strategy assumes no trust mismanagement (11/05)
Andersen reports cited in tribal trust cases (08/12)
Norton handed worst nightmare (7/25)
Trust accounting looms for tribes (3/20)
Bush administration bets on accounting (3/18)
GAO: Full reconciliation impossible (2/8)

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