Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

BIA rejects Connecticut tribe’s bid for recognition

WASHINGTON -- The Golden Hill Paugussetts' plans for a Connecticut casino and thousands of acres of land claims were dealt a major setback Monday, as the Bureau of Indian Affairs rejected their bid for federal recognition for a second time.

The Paugussetts did not satisfy four of the seven criteria needed for recognition -- failing to prove they descended from a historical tribe and that they continuously existed as a political and social community.

The group also did not provide sufficient evidence that its ancestor, William Sherman, was an Indian, and it weakened its petition by trying to include descendants from the historical Turkey Hill tribe, which ceased to exist around 1825, the BIA said.

Paugussett Chief Quiet Hawk said the BIA is "out of control on this decision." The tribe will appeal, he said.

"For the BIA to recognize four tribes (in Connecticut) and not recognize the fifth, I do not find this an objective decision but a political one," he said.

The chief also said the tribe "will receive justice one way or another," and plans again to pursue its claims against property throughout Fairfield County.

BIA Deputy Assistant Secretary Aurene Martin, who issued the decision, said that while the Paugussetts were recognized by the state of Connecticut, that factor wasn't enough to make up for other serious shortcomings in the petition.

The group, which has reservation land in Colchester and Trumbull, has been struggling to gain recognition since 1982. They were rejected by the BIA in 1996, but got a second chance when the Interior Board of Indian Appeals reviewed the decision and sent it back to the BIA for reconsideration.

"The Golden Hill Paugussetts have failed at every step in the process -- despite numerous opportunities -- to prove its case," Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said. "This is a very welcome victory for the public interest, but it's no cause for complacency or overconfidence. This tribe has threatened repeatedly that it will retaliate for denial of recognition by filing thousands of land claims."

In order to receive recognition, a tribe must prove it has been continuously active as a community and a political unit, and that the members descended directly from a historical Indian tribe.

Martin said 68 of the 108 Paugussett members listed in the BIA petition descended from the Turkey Hill group, and were not part of the Golden Hill group recognized by the state. She said the BIA questioned the Paugussetts about including the Turkey Hill faction in the petition, but the group refused to leave Turkey Hill members out.

As a result, Martin said, the Paugussetts actually met fewer criteria in this ruling than they did in the preliminary review in January 2003.

Members of Congress expressed relief at the decision.

"There is a law, and we were beginning to wonder if the law meant anything," Rep. Christopher Shays, R-Conn., said. "This is the umpteenth rejection -- I don't see how the Golden Hill Paugussetts can reverse this decision."

In the past 15 years the Paugussetts filed claims on more than 700,000 acres of land, setting off a flurry of legal challenges. And in 1993, then-tribal leader Moonface Bear, also known as Kenneth Piper, was the central figure in 10-week armed standoff between state police and the tribe, for selling untaxed cigarettes on its Colchester reservation.

The land claims, which stretched from Middletown to Wilton, and from Greenwich through lower Westchester County in New York, were dropped as the BIA process continued, but could have been revived if they received federal recognition.

Chief Quiet Hawk has said the tribe spent "a few million dollars" on the recognition bid. The group has received backing from wealthy New York investor Thomas C. Wilmot Sr., chairman of the board of shopping mall developer Wilmorite Inc.

State lawmakers and members of Congress have been openly opposed to the Paugussetts' bid, and last week suggested that this decision would be a test of the BIA's credibility.

The agency is under fire for its last two decisions granting recognition to Connecticut tribes. And both cases have been appealed by the state to the Interior Board of Indian Appeals. In both instances, the BIA issued preliminary determinations against recognition, and then later approved the tribes in the final decision.

The BIA issued its first preliminary ruling against the Paugussetts in May 1995, and made a final negative ruling in September 1996. The tribe appealed to the IBIA, which referred the case back to the BIA, leading to another full review. In January 2003 the BIA issued a preliminary ruling against the new petition.

Tribes seek federal recognition to establish their sovereignty and receive federal funding for education, housing and health care. It also is the first step toward opening a gaming operation.

The decision leaves Connecticut with four federally recognized tribes.

The Mashantucket Pequots and the Mohegans, both in eastern Connecticut, operate two of the most successful casinos in the world. The Eastern Pequots, also based in eastern Connecticut, received recognition in June 2002, and the Schaghticokes, based in Kent, were granted recognition in late January.

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