Chief Jim Gray files two suits Friday against the Osage Nation Congress

Osage Nation Principal Chief Jim Gray filed two lawsuits against the Osage Nation Congress Friday. The first suit asks for the maximum fine for six members of Congress in which the suit claims they violated the Open Meetings Law. The second suit asks for an injunction barring Congress from taking any action on ONCR 09-15 and for the courts to declare the veto override that took place Nov. 3 unconstitutional.

Phone calls were not returned by Gray’s legal counsel, Gary S. Pitchlynn of Norman-based Pitchlynn & Williams, by the time this story was published.

Congressional members Doug Revard, William “Kugee” Supernaw, Eddy Red Eagle, Anthony Shackelford, Faren Anderson and Jerri Jean Branstetter are all named in the first suit as having violated the Nation’s Open Meetings law – which Anderson sponsored. The suit seeks a declaratory judgment against all six members as well as the maximum fine for violating the law in the amount of $500.

The Osage News reported Thursday that Congressman Anthony Shackelford was not in the closed-door meeting that took place in the Congressional chambers Oct. 26 when five members of Congress dead-bolted the doors to the chambers and refused the Osage News access to the meeting where they discussed budgetary cuts they proposed the next day.

According to the suit, “Defendant’s actions in attempting to meet and conduct official business in secret deprived the Nation’s citizens of (a) information necessary to assess whether Defendants adequately fulfilled their duties as representatives of the Nation’s citizens in the lawmaking process; and (b) the opportunity to attend, speak, and participate as constituents of Defendants.”

The second suit seeks a declaratory judgment against Speaker Archie Mason for certifying the override of a veto that the suit claims was unconstitutional. The suit claims the veto override that took place Nov. 3 violates Article VI, section 10 of the Osage Nation Constitution as well as Article VI, section 13. The suit asks for a judgment that would make the veto override of ONCR 09-15, a resolution in support of the gaming enterprise board’s 2010 plan of operation, null and void. The suit also asks that the judgment be given to make “any congressional rules permitting carry-over of a vetoed bill from a prior session of Congress are unconstitutional and invalid.”

“Article VI, [section] 10 states that Congress ‘may only meet in the interim, the period of time between two sessions, by Interim Committee(s) to study a particular subject or subjects in order to make recommendations to the next regular session of the legislature,’” according to the suit. “Thus, the Constitution plainly bars Congress from voting to override a veto in an interim period between two sessions.”

The suit also asks for an injunction on members of Congress from taking “any action” on ONCR 09-15. However, a resolution sponsored by Congressman Eddy Red Eagle to set the Nation’s spending at $26.8 million was just passed by Congress and vetoed by Chief Gray.

Phone calls were not returned by Legislative Counsel Loyed Gill by the time this story was published.

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