Special vote to fill Rocky Boy chair

With the leadership of Rocky Boy's Indian Reservation saying it will call for a special election to fill the vacant chair of the Chippewa Cree Business Committee, the man removed from that position Monday said this morning he will continue to fight the action.

Ken Blatt St. Marks, who the council removed as chair Monday, said he will fight the action, but declined to comment on what he would do specifically.

Richard Sangrey, chief of staff for the Business Committee, said this morning that the committee will request the election committee at the reservation to set a special election to fill the position, and that Vice Chair Richard Morsette will act as chair until that happens. Both actions are set up in the Chippewa Cree Tribe's constitution, he added.

St. Marks has said the action by the tribal council — which suspended him March 15 and removed him from the position Monday — has been illegal and is in retaliation for his looking into and trying to correct what he says is mismanagement and misuse of federal money appropriated for the Chippewa Cree Tribe. He says he is working closely with inspectors from federal agencies investigating the use of money at Rocky Boy.

St. Marks said this morning that the council's actions Monday did not give him any chance to respond and are based on false allegations, including the Business Committee listing in a press release charges of sexual harassment he said never have been made.

"I never was charged with sexual harassment," he said. "The day they dismissed me was the first I heard of that."

He said his refusal to go into the Business Committee meeting to answer the charges made was because the committee never told him with what he was being charged.

"I still don't know who was accusing me of what," St. Marks said. "How could I go in and answer questions without knowing who was accusing me?"

He said action in civil charges filed against him, accusing him of threatening and intimidating an employee of the Chippewa Cree Health Board, have been delayed. He has requested a 30-day extension in that case.

He also has said that charge probably stems from his trying to find out why the project to build a new clinic at the reservation is $5 million in debt.

St. Marks said the council has dismissed trespassing charges filed against him.

When the council suspended him March 15 — in a meeting St. Marks says was illegal because it was not announced and conducted secretly — it banned him from entering the offices of the council.

Tribal Judge Duane Gopher that day also issued a restraining order keeping St. Marks out of the offices.

March 18, Gopher rescinded that order.

The council had St. Marks arrested March 20 for trespassing when he entered the building, saying its order included in the suspension still was in effect. He was released on $300 bail.

Tribal attorney Joel Rosette said this morning that, although those charges have been filed, the council does not plan to push that issue.

"As of right now, we're just trying to get back to business and not focus so much on the negative," Rosette said, adding, "But (the charges) are there. We'll just see how it proceeds."