WASHINGTON (AP) -- A group of Oglala Sioux girls who were required to prove their gender before playing in a 1995 basketball tournament in Rapid City, S.D., lost a Supreme Court appeal today.

The lawsuit, contending that the incident left the girls depressed and embarrassed, sought to collect monetary damages for racial and sexual discrimination, invasion of privacy, intentional infliction of emotional distress and mental anguish.

Lower courts threw out the lawsuit.

The girls, all 10 to 12 years old at the time, represented the Pine Ridge Reservation's Loneman School in a tournament sponsored by the Young Men's Christian Association.

The case is Davenport v. YMCA, 99-1732.

At a sentencing hearing on Dec. 17 in Pierre, U.S. District Judge Charles B. Kornmann ordered Gunhammer to serve 63 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release.

A second defendant, Marlon Dale Sun Bear, 24, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder on June 18. His sentencing is set for Jan. 7 in Pierre.

She spoke of police brutality against a mentally challenged tribal member and its impact on tribal people. "It happens everyday. It's mind boggling that this continues in this day and age. And what goes on in this state." The weekly editor said she and her mate were denied service in Gregory. They walked in and sat down, preparing to order. After waiting for some time, her mate suggested they leave as it seemed obvious the waitress wasn't going to serve their table. Two white customers came in and were served before Lehto and her mate were even approached.

S.D. questions how bones got into dirt at site
BY JOHN-JOHN WILLIAMS IV
Argus Leader published: 6/8/02
Insinuation insults Yankton Sioux

Native American remains found at a construction site might have been planted there, a lawyer for the state suggested in court Friday.

Witnesses were questioned during a hearing on a request for a court order stopping further removal of remains from the site.

The Yankton Sioux Tribe filed the lawsuit in federal court this week requesting that the burial site near the North Point State Recreation Area near Pickstown be protected. The tribe also wants Judge Lawrence Piersol to declare the transfer of Missouri River shoreline from the federal government to the state unconstitutional.

The hearing continues Monday with testimony from the state.

State officials said no skull was among the initial remains discovered when they began excavating the site last month.

Chytka began to cry when Wynne asked him if he had planted any of the remains.

"Oh no," Chytka said. "Why would I do that?"

Wynne said even asking the question was insulting.

Chytka and Faith Spotted Eagle testified at the hearing about going to the site to protect the remains.

Workers hired by the state to remove fill dirt at the recreation area uncovered funerary objects and bones thought to be the remains of two children and a woman last month. State officials had the remains transported to Rapid City, saying they first thought they were not Native American.

Gov. Bill Janklow's press secretary, Bob Mercer, has said the state notified the tribe of the remains later, after determining they were Native American.

Spotted Eagle testified that when she left the site in question June 3 and came back the following day, more land had been moved and that two human skulls were protruding from the ground.

Tribal officials said they informed the Corps of Engineers before the land transfer that the North Point area also contains sites used for Native American religious purposes, including burial grounds.

According to the lawsuit, tribal officials urged the corps not to transfer the North Point land to the state, fearing that those sites would be harmed.

Chytka, who says he is a descendant of those buried at the site, said he was told from a young age that it was his responsibility to protect the land.

"A lot of the elders came to me and said 'Not again. We went through this once, we will not go through this again,' " Chytka said referring to White Swan, near the Fort Randall Dam, where a massive Indian burial ground was discovered more than two years ago.

Wynne said the temporary restraining order is a way to keep further work from occurring at the site until the permanent hearing. The temporary restraining order can last up to 10 days.

"It buys time until the judge is able to make a decision," Wynne said.

Wynne said the case will set a national precedent because it will test whether sacred sites can be transferred out of federal protection.

"It makes me kind of sick," Wynne said. "I shouldn't have to do this."

The players told coaches and administrators, who passed the information along to officials at Stanley County.

Administrators say they took the complaints seriously, but an investigation was not able to determine for sure who made the racial slur.

The problem is not isolated to Stanley County, says Glenn Drapeau, a tribal councilman of the Yankton Sioux Tribe and a standout basketball player for the Marty Braves in the early '90s.

Bill Kappenman, a white teacher now working in Montrose, coached girls and boys basketball teams on the Rosebud and Pine Ridge reservations for many years in the '70s and '80s.

"For the most part, these kids kept their cool and poise," he says. "They were extremely upset, but they managed to remain focused on what we were there for."

Nobody is disputing that something happened the night of Jan. 27 in the Fort Pierre gym. But the degree of the offense is in question.

The players who said they were the target of the taunts could not be reached for comment.

But Cheryl Prue was furious when her son, another Todd County player, told her about the incident.

"I spoke to our athletic director, fired off letters, and spoke to administrators," Prue said. "My son thought I went almost too far."

Francis McKnight went to the game but couldn't hear the remarks, though she believes she saw their effect.

Several students told her it appeared as though the hecklers were using a game program to get the names of the Indian players.

Stanley County High School officials took immediate action, said Principal Tony Glass. An investigation identified one person, whom Glass interviewed. The youth denied making the comments.

Next, Glass asked his Todd County counterpart for the statements of the boys who were the subject of the taunts. He got three statements faxed to his office last week.

"Something happened. Something was said. We're not sure yet if it was a student, or a community member," Glass said. "We're going through everything possible."

About 17 percent of the students in the Stanley County school system are American Indian, according to state figures.

The school has not received any similar complaints in the past, said Glass.

"Our kids get along. All of them," Glass said. "We've got no internal problems with race, none whatsoever."

Jerry Kleinsasser, the Stanley County superintendent, said he's moving cautiously.

"These racial things can really get touchy. A guy has to be really careful what he says," Kleinsasser explained. "We haven't identified anybody. I don't know if we can prove anything."

The superintendent said the investigation is stymied by conflicting stories.

"I don't want to make it sound like we're ignoring this. We're investigating this. We've talked to people, but nobody admitted it," he said.

Taking action difficult
Even when an incident occurs, just what to do about is complex is a difficult question.

Drapeau said his teammates from a decade ago remained well-disciplined in the face of taunts. Players would tell the captain, who would approach the referee.

The referees weren't always responsive, he said.

"One told our captain to shut-up. He didn't want to hear about it," he said.

"I've never, ever seen them call a technical for racial misconduct."

Referees have the authority to take action against taunting or baiting players on the floor, said Bob Lowery, assistant executive director of the South Dakota High School Activities Association.

But the officials aren't there for crowd control.

"That should be done at the local level," Lowery said. "The athletic director, principal or superintendent has the direct responsibility to control their crowd. They need to deal with that, rather than trying to pass the buck. The ultimate responsibility lies with the local administration."

"It's probably true, and I know a lot of people on the reservation feel that way," Marlyn Goldhammer, SDHSAA executive director, said of the comments at games. "But most of the time, it's pretty much a local problem. They have to deal with those people at a local level."

Morality education -- old-fashioned right vs. wrong -- is the solution, said the Rev. Judy Shaw of Sioux Falls' Center of Life Church. Shaw had an outreach mission in Fort Thompson for four years.

"At the high school level, issues like this should be included," she said.

"We're dealing with behavior -- the molding and shaping of a child's mind set. That's what the school districts need to address."

After his years on the reservation, Kappenman still can't see an answer.

"At one time, I thought there might be a solution," he said. "I hate to sound pessimistic, but an overall, broad, reaching solution, I don't know if one exists.

"I don't know if it can cure the overall biases, but at a minimum it will increase our understanding of each other," he said.

The activities association tries to foster an atmosphere of education and understanding after an incident like what occurred in Stanley County, said Lowery.

"We try to get the two schools together, usually afterward, when cooler heads prevail," he said. "We haven't closed our eyes to it. We're constantly addressing it through our handbook or mailings."

The Todd County School Council wants to conduct cultural awareness sessions for other student councils around the state to try and combat the problem, said Nancy Keller, Todd County High School's principal.

"If the students teach other students, it would create a powerful message," said Keller. "Far better than if it comes from adults."

{ref: SOUTH DAKOTA MASCOT }

LAKE ANDES -- A Lake Andes police officer choked a 12-year-old American Indian boy last summer because he was "lippy," the Charles Mix County state's attorney told a jury Thursday.

Officer Michael Atwood is charged with a misdemeanor simple assault for the incident, which allegedly occurred in a city park on the Fourth of July.

During the first day of testimony, three adult witnesses said they saw Atwood grab Ben Cournoyer by the throat during the confrontation. But the town's police chief told the all-white jury of seven men and five women that he believes Atwood used reasonable force.

"He lost his cool," said Charles Mix County State's Attorney Scott Podhradsky said during his opening statement. "The only reason he grabbed the kid was because he got lippy."

The alleged choking incident intensified racial tension in the county, which is home to the Yankton Sioux Tribe. Tribal members marched in protest last summer when the Lake Andes City Council refused to dismiss Atwood.

Security was tight at Charles Mix County Courthouse on Thursday. A three-page judge's order was posted at each entrance outlining courtroom rules. Every person coming to the third floor was scanned with a metal detector and at least eight law enforcement officers were on hand.

Atwood, who is still working as a police officer in Lake Andes, faces up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine if convicted.

The prosecution rested its case Thursday and the trial continues today with witnesses for the defense.

Three adults, who live by the park and witnessed the incident, demonstrated the choking to the jury by grabbing an imaginary child, or their own neck.

John Wright, another witness, said Cournoyer didn't try to assault the officer, or try to get away.

"While the officer had the boy around the neck, he wasn't flailing or anything," Wright said. "He was just hanging there."

Lake Andes Police Chief R.G. Swatos, a witness for the prosecution, said that during his investigation Atwood told him he had grabbed Cournoyer because the youth had smarted off .

"Is there anything in the manuel that says if a kid gets lippy you can use force?" Podhradsky asked the police chief.

"No," Swatos quietly replied.

Under cross examination by Atwood's lawyer, the chief said he spoke to the boy after the incident and saw no marks on the youth's neck to indicate he had been choked.

"Are you satisfied he used reasonable force?" asked Craig Parkhurst.

"Right," replied Swatos.

"In your 22 years in law enforcement, have you seen people who have been choked?"

"Yes, and there's always something," said the chief.

Pat Olson -- a Mitchell police officer who trains new recruits in the use of force and a de-escalation technique known as "verbal judo" -- said Atwood used too much force, too soon.

"Based on what I teach, he had no reason to treat those boys in that manner,"

Olson said.

The first defense witness was Mike Dangel, a journeyman lineman for Charles Mix Electric, and the mayor of Lake Andes.

Dangel said during his investigation, he saw no marks on the boy's neck.

John Fuerst, a jailer for Charles Mix County said the youths weren't in a very good mood when brought into his facility.

"They were not very cooperative," he said. "They weren't scared."

In South Dakota, seven of the nine tribes operate at least one jail. Pine Ridge has three. Two reported that they have been filled to two to three times their capacity.

The Flandreau Santee Sioux and Yankton Sioux tribes coordinate law enforcement with their county jails.

But tribal police say their aging jails threaten the safety of inmates and officers.

An unruly prisoner broke out the only window in the men's cell, which now is covered by plywood.

"Now, we just hope it quits raining, then clean it up," he said.

... ... ... The jail isn't supposed to hold more than 24 inmates.

The jail staff tries to arrange for temporary releases of less serious offenders as often as it can.

... "We know there's a tremendous need" for more reservation jails, said Van

Norman, a member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe. "There has been tremendous population growth in Indian Country, and the existing facilities were mostly built in the late '60s and early '70s, so they're coming to the end of their useful life."

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