Santa Fe Indian School will raze three more old buildings as officials in New Mexico question whether federal laws were broken.
The school has already demolished 15 buildings, which dated to the late 1800s and the early 1900s. Most of the buildings were unsafe for continued use, the Bureau of Indian Affairs said in 2002, when Congress appropriated $23.2 million for new construction.
The school is part of the Bureau of Indian Education system and is held in trust for the 19 Pueblos of New Mexico. State officials lack jurisdiction over the campus but they say the tribes may have violated federal historic preservation laws by tearing down the old buildings.
The school is located next to an Indian Health Service hospital.
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