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Pending Schaghticoke Land Claims The Schaghticoke Tribal Nation was deprived of much of its historical lands through a series of illegal and involuntary transfers, primarily carried out by a succession of "overseers" charged by the Colony and State of Connecticut with protecting the Tribe and its lands. In this century, the Tribe has attempted to preserve the small land portion it still controls and to regain some of its lost land base. There are three cases pending in the federal district court in Connecticut involving the land claims of the Tribe. The first, United States v. 43.47 Acres of Land, Civil No. H-85-1078 (PCD) (hereinafter Schaghticoke I), is a condemnation proceeding that was initiated by the United States for the benefit of the National Park Service in 1985 to acquire 43.47 acres of land in Connecticut for the Appalachian Trail. The second case, Schaghticoke Tribal Nation v. Kent School Corporation et al., Civil No.3-98-CV-01113 (hereinafter Schaghticoke II), is a suit filed in 1998 pursuant to the federal Nonintercourse Act claiming title to more than 1900 acres of land that were transferred to third parties in violation of that act. The third case, Schaghticoke Tribal Nation v. United States of America et al., Civil No. 300CV0820, (hereinafter Schaghticoke III), is a suit filed in May 2000 pursuant to the federal Nonintercourse Act claiming title to more than 148 acres of land that were transferred to third parties in violation of that act. The 1985 condemnation action filed in Schaghticoke I would take additional land from the Tribe's meager Reservation, threaten the rattlesnake den (one of the few remaining in Connecticut), and transfer to the United States tracts to which the Tribe claims rightful title under the Nonintercourse Act. After determining that the condemnation could not proceed if the Tribe were acknowledged under federal law, the court stayed the action pending the BIA's determination of that tribal status –- making this a central issue in the case. For many years the government pressed the court to summarily determine Schaghticoke I, and resisted the Tribe's request for additional time to complete the necessary research to support its petition for recognition. Now that the Tribe has completed its research and faces years of delays before the BIA will issue a final determination on its petition, the United States resists the Nation’s request that the court provide a judicial resolution of tribal status, a resolution that will also resolve the pending condemnation claim in Schaghticoke I. The Tribe's intensive research effort in support of its petition for federal acknowledgment led to the 1998 filing of Schaghticoke II. In this case, the Tribe asks the court to restore approximately 1900 acres of Reservation land improperly transferred in violation of the 1790 Non-Intercourse Act. Governing precedent in Golden Hill Paugussett means this case cannot be resolved without a final determination of the Tribe's status –- which the BIA may not complete (or even begin) for many years. The
Schaghticoke Tribal Nation asked the District Judge to consolidate
Schaghticoke I and II, and decide the central issue common to both
actions –- the Tribe's federal status. The Schaghticoke Tribal
Nation seeks due process from the United States. If the agency cannot
act, then the court should. Moreover, the Department of the Interior
has a conflict of interest in Schaghticoke I since a negative ruling
on tribal status would produce victory in court for the United States
in its claim to condemn tribal lands. Schaghticoke III is an attempt
to have restored to the Tribe, land lying immediately south of the
current Reservation, which was illegally transferred to New Milford
Power Co. in connection with the construction and operation of the
Bulls Bridge Dam and power plant. |
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