Public Relations

Eastern Cherokee council subpoenas Facebook for casino video

Friday, June 10, 2016

The footage is grainy but a member of Angela Kephart's entourage can be seen engaging in close physical contact with a male employee of the Harrah's Cherokee Casino Resort in North Carolina. Still image from Cherokee Rants & Raves

Leaders of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in North Carolina want to know who put footage from a casino surveillance video on Facebook.

The tribal council voted to subpoena the social media giant at a meeting last week, The Smoky Mountain News reported. The video in question appeared on Cherokee Rants & Raves and it stirred major controversy on the reservation because it showed some questionable activity at the Harrah's Cherokee Casino Resort.

But the council killed a resolution that would have removed Angela Kephart from the casino's management board, according to results posted by The Cherokee One Feather, the tribe's newspaper. Leaders said she couldn't be held responsible for the actions of her friends, one of whom was accused of sexually harassing a young casino employee.

“I’m glad that finally the truth was revealed, and it’s basically just a political witch-hunt,” Kephart said at the council meeting, The Smoky Mountain News reported. She said she was targeted for removal simply because she was appointed to her post by the tribe's former chief.

Chief Patrick Lambert, though, believes Kephart should step down. “I think she should show respect to our tribe and the position by resigning or face further potential efforts for removal," he told the paper.

Kephart has filed a lawsuit in tribal court against a tribal member who is the mother of a casino employee who was present on the night of the incident at the casino. She claims she was forced to resign from her job at the Cherokee Indian Hospital due to negative attention on the reservation.

Get the Story:
After investigation, casino board member will keep her seat (The Smoky Mountain News 6/10)