Members of a family who have been kicked out of the Sauk-Suiattle Tribe of Washington are taking their case to tribal court today.

At least seven members of the Bill family were disenrolled last month by the tribal council on the grounds that they did not meet the enrollment criteria. But the family says the move is politically motivated because they used to control the council along with the Joseph/Brown family.

Now that Browns and the Bills are out of power, the new tribal leadership ousted employees with ties to the two families. One of those fired was the tribe's longtime police chief, Ernie DeCoteau, whose wife is a Joseph.

The new leadership is from the Moses and Enick families. John Pugh, a former tribal councilman from the Moses side, said when the Browns and Bills were in power, the Moses and Enick families were treated poorly.

Get the Story:
Sauk-Suiattle to disenroll members as corruption allegations fly (The Skagit Valley Herald 4/24)

Relevant Links:
Sauk-Suiattle Tribe - http://www.sauk-suiattle.com

Related Stories:
Sauk-Suiattle Tribe's longtime police chief fired (03/14)
Sauk-Suiattle Tribe's police chief suspended (02/28)