Bernice Delorme
OST lawyer publicly reprimanded
By Brandon Ecoffey
Native Sun News Managing Editor PINE RIDGE — In a ruling handed down by the Oglala Sioux Tribal Supreme Court, the Court ruled that Bernice Delorme, OST tribal attorney, made a false statement about former Chief Judge Patrick Lee that “impugned his judicial integrity as well as that of the court.” The court publicly reprimanded Delorme after the former Chief Judge Lee filed an ethical complaint against Delorme. The complaint alleged that Delorem, acting in her official capacity as attorney for the Oglala Sioux Tribe, implied that Judge Lee had ruled in favor of a plaintiff who was suing the tribe because he was a “pal” of his. Lee also alleged that Delorme’s assertion that Judge carried out his judicial duties out of favoritism “impugned his integrity and consequently the integrity of the judicial process on the Pine Ridge Reservation.” Delorme filed motions to dismiss the complaint against her however the three judge panel ruled in favor of Judge Lee in a two page ruling that set a strong precedent that tribal court proceedings be respected by litigators. “Every attorney and advocate of the Court has a responsibility to treat the Court and its officers with respect and also to encourage the public to treat the Court and its officers with respect,” the court said in the ruling. “This is especially true for attorneys who work for the Tribe because the Court system is one of the institutions the Oglala Sioux Tribal citizens have created to administer a government and the attorney serves the government and its citizens.” The court would go on to say that it was “not holding” that attorneys could not criticize the court as guaranteed by the Indian Civil Rights Act but that critiques that are “designed solely to impugn the integrity of the judicial process” would not be tolerated. The statements made by Delorme were on the record. The Oglala Sioux Tribal Supreme Court consists of the Honorable Sherman J. Marshall and the honorable B.J. Jones Michael Swallow. (Contact Brandon Ecoffey at staffwriter2@nsweekly.com) Copyright permission Native Sun News
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