Feds asked to investigate alleged tribal attack

Greg Tuttle

Monday, Oct. 2, 2000 | 11:10 a.m.

The Las Vegas Paiutes have come under federal scrutiny in the wake of a scandal involving accusations the tribal police chief was fired for an alleged assault on a council member.

The law enforcement arm of the Bureau of Indian Affairs has initiated an investigation into the tiny tribe's police department, but has not taken steps to intervene in a dispute within the tribe among members who say they have been kicked out by corrupt leaders.

Cmdr. Richard Armstrong of the BIA said Friday that federal agents will investigate the criminal allegations against former tribal police chief Tonia Carter-Means, but that the agency will not become involved in the police department's day-to-day operations.

Agents have yet to be assigned to the case, and none has visited the small reservation located just north of downtown Las Vegas on Main Street despite rumors among some tribal members.

The BIA is intervening "to maintain safety and peace" following the Sept. 22 firing of Carter-Means after a group of tribal members demanded her ouster, Phoenix-based BIA agent Sharlot Johnson said.

The BIA involvement is limited at this time to the criminal complaint filed against Carter-Means and her husband, Nevada Highway Patrol Trooper Roger Means, Johnson said.

Some tribal members have asked the BIA to investigate claims the council has broken both tribal and federal law by disenrolling 14 members of the 40-person tribe, and seizing property. That issue has led to recent protests on Main Street and in front of the U.S. Courthouse on Las Vegas Boulevard.

Tribal attorney David Colvin said tribal officials have directed him to make no comment on either the firing of Carter-Means, who also sits on the seven-member tribal council, or the BIA investigation.

"The official stand of the tribe is no comment," he said.

Carter-Means referred all questions to her attorney, Steve Wolfson, who did not return telephone calls.

Carter-Means, 36, and her 42-year-old husband were arrested by Las Vegas Metro Police Sept. 9 during an incident at the off-reservation home of tribal council member Lucille Campa. According to police records, Campa was hosting a party at her Aztec Cliffs Court home when Carter-Means threatened a guest with a knife at about 1 a.m. The alleged victim, Darren Sackett, also serves on the tribal council.

Campa told police she was attacked at about 2:30 a.m. when she asked Carter-Means, who is also her cousin, to leave. Campa said she was struck in the face, then pinned to the floor and kicked and punched, according to police records.

Roger Means has been placed on administrative leave by the Nevada Highway Patrol. Both are scheduled to appear later this month on possible charges of domestic violence battery in Las Vegas Municipal Court.

An attorney for several former tribal members who have filed lawsuits in tribal court seeking reinstatement after their memberships were revoked last year, said the involvement by the BIA is welcomed.

"We have the law on our side, now hopefully we will have law enforcement on our side," said attorney Mike Stuhff.

Tribal members have said they believe the alleged assault by Carter-Means took place when Campa and Sackett refused to sign documents disenrolling more members from the tribe.

Former tribal member Debra Faria said she is relieved to have the BIA involved in what has become a volatile dispute. Faria is among the 14 tribal members kicked out last year when tribal officials said their ancestors did not have the heritage to qualify as Las Vegas Paiutes.

But the disenrolled members have said the actions are illegal and are the result of greed. Once destitute, the tribe has become wealthy through its tax-free smoke shop and is developing a world-class golf resort on tribal land north of Las Vegas.

The mood on the small reservation, is tense, Faria said. Some tribal members have reported seeing what they believe are BIA agents looking around the reservation, Faria.

"Tensions are high. Very high," she said.