Marilyn Winsea, the ousted chairwoman of the Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma, is taking her fight to tribal court.

Winsea, who took office last July, says she was never given a chance to respond to complaints that led to her removal earlier this month. "I asked for a report of cause and still haven’t received any kind of official report,” she told The Shawnee News-Star. “I received an issue of a meeting but I would think I’d receive a rationale for the cause. I still wonder what I did wrong."

Winsea believes she was targeted because of her gender and her reform efforts. She wants mandatory drug testing for employees, budget cuts and a Bureau of Indian Affairs audit.

A tribal court hearing was scheduled for May 21 but has been pushed back to late July, Winsea said.

Get the Story:
Kickapoo tribal chairman ousted from position (The Shawnee News-Star 5/28)

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Kickapoo leaders give ousted chairwoman another hearing (05/11)