"The sad and troubling news coming from Spirit Lake got a little more troubling over the weekend.

A whistleblower who called attention to the situation there has been reprimanded and reassigned by the Indian Health Service.

Michael Tilus called attention to conditions at Spirit Lake in April in a letter that bluntly criticized the Spirit Lake Tribe for serious failures in protecting children.

That’s hardly sufficient reason for such discipline, given the circumstances.

The Indian Health Service needs to explain itself.

Otherwise, the stain on its integrity caused by the situation at Spirit Lake only deepens.

Because it sure looks as if Tilus was disciplined because he talked when others wanted him to be quiet."

Get the Story:
OUR OPINION: Indian Health Service must explain Tilus reprimand (The Grand Forks Herald 7/31)

Related Stories:
IHS reprimands employee who warned about Spirit Lake children (7/30)
Man charged for murders of Spirit Lake Dakotah Nation children (7/24)
Editorial: Children's safety at risk on Spirit Lake Dakotah Nation (7/18)
Toddler who died on Spirit Lake Dakotah Nation being laid to rest (7/13)
BIA investigates death of baby girl on Spirit Lake Dakotah Nation (7/11)
Spirit Lake Dakotah Nation faces scrutiny over child welfare woes (7/9)
HHS official blames Spirit Lake Nation for child abuse problems (6/22)
Sen. Hoeven seeks answers on Spirit Lake social services (04/25)
Editorial: A free press is essential, even in a tribal society (4/17)
Deaths of Spirit Lake Dakotah children treated as homicide (05/26)
Spirit Lake mother confirms identities of two slain children (5/25)
Father suspected for deaths of two children at Spirit Lake (5/24)