High school reopening on Monday
Damage by vandals extensive
Jim Maniaci
Dine' Bureau
FORT DEFIANCE — Window Rock High School will resume classes
at 8 a.m. Monday after being closed for several days as crews
repaired an estimated $50,000 damage vicious vandals caused early
Tuesday.
And police agencies are being tight-lipped about their investigation,
not saying if the attack was gang-related as younger gang members
try to step up to fill the shoes vacated by their imprisoned elders,
or if it was retaliation for poor grades or disciplinary action
by school officials.
Earlier this month detectives revealed that about 20 youth in
Fort Defiance had been profiled as potential trouble-makers
seeking to restore the murderous chaos that plagued the community
a few years ago.
Navajo Criminal Investigations Department detectives are being
aided by the FBI, which would only confirm that the case is now
with the Safe Trails Task Force.
The only information available from Navajo police comes from the
initial Window Rock Law Enforcement District report saying the
vandals pried open a metal door at the welding shop on the south
side of the campus, and left through the northeast doors.
There were footprints that seemed to lead to a residential area
near the Navajo Tribal Utilities Authority complex to the south,
but authorities have not said if it was a dead end.
A security guard discovered the break-in around 4:30 a.m. and
called Navajo police for back-up. Two officers and the guard checked
the building and found no one inside.
Superintendent J. Ronald Hennings called it absolutely the worst
damage by vandals he has ever seen in a quarter of a century and
thanked the community for its response in providing many tips,
leads and possible suspects.
It took a large crew Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday to clean
up the mess and board up broken windows.
The initial officer's report said the library was heavily damaged,
along with vending machines and the administrative office.
Although the schedule of rounds by security officers are varied,
school officials indicate they believe the unidentified vandals
had at least three hours to do their dirty work.
They said most of the administration office computers were destroyed.
However, Hennings said there were backups. Even the book collection
was damaged, he added.
"Because of the school's closure, seniors are asked to come
to school on Monday to finish their classwork and to start their
check-out process," Principal Joe Gill said Friday.
Superintendent Hennings added, "It is very important for
them to be in their regular classes on Monday."
Principal Gill warned all students to leave their backpacks at
home for the rest of the school year.
"Students are also reminded that all non-school-related items,
such as cassette-disc players, shaving creme, water balloons,
etc., are to be left at home," the principal said.
Other detection measures are being added at the campus, school
officials said, with security increased for tonight's prom, from
8 p.m. to 1 a.m. Everyone will have to pass through metal detectors
to enter.
When the vandals are captured they will be charged under federal
law by the Safe Trails Task Force, a joint tribal-federal program
to investigate and prosecute serious crimes on the Navajo Reservation.
Related incident?
Authorities do not know if another incident is related to the
destruction at the high school. A 32-year-old Fort Defiance security
guard reported a rifle or shotgun being aimed at her around 1:30
p.m.
Wednesday as a vehicle drove by the school.
No shots were fired, according to the Window Rock district report.
She managed to get a vehicle description but could not get the
license plate number of a two-door red sedan with tinted windows.
Chinle drive-by shooting
An 18-year-old Chinle woman was slightly injured by flying debris
from a bullet when her home was hit by five rifle bullets around
11:30 p.m. Thursday.
Four males, including two minor boys, were detained for Safe Trails
Task Force charges as two officers boxed in the men's pickup truck
after a chase on the north side of Chinle.
Erica Tsosie was not seriously injured, nor were Donald Tsosie,
57, or Rena Tsosie, 54, at their home at No. 8 Redwood Housing
in Chinle. Donald was sitting on the porch when the bullets hit
his home.
As officers approached the subdivision from different directions,
one of them turned around in pursuit of a 1994 GMC extended cab
pickup truck that a citizen had called the Chinle police station
about as a possible suspect vehicle.
Lawmen pursued the escaping truck east on Bureau of Indian Affairs
Route 7 the highway to Canyon De Chelly then through the Riverside
and Valley Bridge subdivisions. The driver, identified in the
Law Enforcement Department report as Jeffery Martinez, 18, of
three miles south of Many Farms, turned north on a dirt bus route
near Church's Chicken, the Law Enforcement Department report said.
After about 2 1/2 miles Martinez turned into a residence, and
the two police vehicles boxed him in. The two officers drew their
guns and called for back-up.
The four males were then taken to the Chinle jail, awaiting FBI
agents from Gallup and Flagstaff. The other three were identified
as Eric Yonnie, 20, of Chinle, a 15-year-old boy from the Valley
Bridge Subdivision and a 14-year-old boy from the Tsaile Acres
Subdivision, both in Chinle.
Officers reported finding numerous .22 caliber shell casings in
the truck, along with several bottles of 40-oz. beer. They also
seized a .22 caliber Ruger semi-automatic rifle.
Man hit with shovel
The Safe Trails Task Force also is investigating an attack on
a 17-year-old Sanders boy who was beaten on the head with shovel
and had to be flown from Gallup to an Albuquerque hospital.
Three males were drinking at No. 50 Rural Housing in Sanders around
10 p.m. Monday when they argued over some gang-related issues.
The victim was hit in the head by a shovel, and possibly other
weapons, inflicting severe brain trauma, according to the Window
Rock Law Enforcement District report.
He was taken to the Indian Health Service hospital in Gallup,
then transferred to the University of New Mexico hospital in Albuquerque.
No arrest charges were listed against the suspect, Nevell Roanhorse,
19, of Rural Housing in Sanders. The age and address of the second
suspect was not known, but he was believed to be a Houck resident.
Stolen vehicle found vandalized
A detective from the Shiprock Criminal Investigations District
found a stolen vehicle with its windshield smashed and its stereo
removed when he checked it out Wednesday morning.
The detective found the 1991 Nissan 4x4 parked at Mile Post 22
on BIA Route 13 and it turned out to be the one that Manuel Henderson
Jr., 24, of Northeast Heights No. 2, Shiprock, had reported stolen.
There was no damage or value listed in the report.
Felony warrant served
A 34-year-old Holbrook man, who Navajo police said has a violent
history, surrendered peacefully Wednesday afternoon to a Dilkon
Law Enforcement District sergeant who found him walking with his
wife about a mile southwest of the community.
Robert A. Mills was taken into custody for five Arizona state
warrants and transported to the Navajo County Jail at Holbrook.
The sergeant received a tip that Mills and wife Dorthea were staying
at No. 74-14 Navajo Housing Authority in Dilkon. The report added
that the use of a police dog probably helped convince Mills not
to resist arrest.
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Parents MADD in Zuni
Elizabeth Hardin-Burrola
Special to the Independent
ZUNI — It's the season for high school graduation parties, and
one local group in Zuni Pueblo is concerned that it's also the season
for irresponsible parents to celebrate by hosting underage drinking
parties for their children.
The group, currently working toward establishing an official chapter
of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), held a public meeting on
Monday evening to discuss this and other problems related to abusive
or illegal alcohol use. In addition, the meeting featured a talk by
Antonio Fernandez, a social worker for the Pueblo. Fernandez, a Yaqui
tribal member, will discuss "Effects of Alcohol on Brain Development."The
meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. in the conference room of the main
tribal office building.
According to Peter G. Tasso, an Albuquerque attorney who is a legal
advisor for the Zuni Pueblo, MADD organizers have learned that problems
related to underage teen drinking are of great concern to many of
the community members who have been attending the MADD organizational
meetings and to those who have completed a community survey.
The group is currently researching issues related to drunken driving
and soliciting public opinion on those issues. This research is required
by the national MADD organization prior to recognition of the local
chapter.
In late March, the group distributed about 800 copies of the "Zuni
Underage Drinking Project Survey" around the pueblo.
Although not a scientific survey, said Tasso, it was a "consciousness
raising survey" that was intended to stimulate community discussion.
The group hoped the survey would answer the question, "How is
alcohol affecting the people in Zuni?" explained Tasso.
The survey results, he said, were "pretty striking" that
alcohol abuse is aversely affecting people. Two hundred and twenty
nine
people returned the survey, which asked 17 questions and also allowed
for written comments. Respondents overwhelmingly agreed that laws
against contributing to the delinquency of minors (for example, adults
hosting underage drinking parties) should be enforced more strictly
(91%), alcohol is a factor in many crimes of violence on the reservation
(97%) and alcohol is a factor in child neglect or abuse on the reservation
(93%).
In addition, 64% of respondents said someone they cared about had
been injured or killed in a motor vehicle crash involving an alcohol
or drug impaired driver, and 59% admitted that an argument in their
home had escalated to physical violence when alcohol use was involved.
On the contrary, only 26% of the respondents thought the Zuni police
were doing enough to reduce underage drinking, and only 22% believed
the Zuni courts were doing enough, as well.
According to a summary by Tasso, "The most frequent [written]
comments were to toughen laws and penalties, enforce them more, and
provide more education for the community."One of the initial
goals of the MADD group was to look at the pueblo's laws and sentencing
related to alcohol violations and recommend changes.
The group has drawn up a list of recommendations that correspond to
the issues in the survey, including toughening laws pertaining to
DWI offenders, holding adults more responsible when their children
are caught abusing alcohol and overhauling the substance abuse treatment
system.
Zuni Governor Malcolm Bowekaty and most tribal council members have
been supportive of the MADD group's efforts thus far, said Tasso.
The tribal government recognizes the need to attract economic development
to the pueblo, he added, and one important step toward that development
is to establish "a stable work force, free from problems of alcohol
abuse and domestic violence."
The Zuni MADD group is open to all area community members, not just
mothers or Zuni tribal members. Tasso encouraged anyone interested
in the problems of alcohol abuse to attend Monday's meeting.
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Long-time BIA chief of education retiring
Larry Di Giovanni
Staff Writer
CROWNPOINT — Larry Holman, who speaks with the straight-shooting
style indigenous to a west Texan, has seen numerous changes in his
nearly 30 years as the Bureau of Indian Affairs' Superintendent for
Education of the Eastern Navajo Agency.
Holman's retirement party was held Friday evening at Red Rock State
Park. Sometime between July 3 and July 24, he will admire the trappings
of his second-floor office for the final time. Thereafter, Holman
and wife Linda will be heading to the allure that retirement offers
in Rio Rancho, "the closest full-service community (near Crownpoint)
we could find."
"It's just on the other side of the sacred mountain over here
to the east," he said.
Get Holman on a conversational roll, and he will tell you about the
BIA's struggle to bring an equal-opportunity education to all Navajo
youth.
Part of that struggle was doing right by BIA teachers. Holman lists
as a personal accomplishment bringing a new personnel system.
The aftermath is that BIA teachers' salaries are higher than the surrounding
states. Their salaries are equal to those the Department of Defense
pays its teachers, established by taking average salaries of the 500
largest school districts in the United States.
Holman testified before Congress in the late 1970s on the need for
a new BIA personnel system.
"We were successful in convincing Congress to pay our teachers
off that (DOD) scale, which I hope has led to a better quality of
staff," he said.
Much change
Holman will tell you that since 1966, when he started his BIA career
as a Wingate Elementary School teacher, BIA schools in the Eastern
Agency have come and gone. He has seen three of the current 18 schools
switch from BIA control into locally-controlled grant (community)
schools. A fourth, Mariano Lake Community School, is still under investigation
for financial mismanagement.
"This is ploughing new ground with the tribes," he said
of conversion to grant schools.
Development of paved roads and housing subdivisions have seen remotely
located extended families dispatch themselves from hogans into nuclear-oriented
settings, Holman said. The trend means moving closer to schools within
the Crownpoint agency's "urban" offerings.
"Back then, very few Navajos owned vehicles," Holman remembered.
"People delivered their kids to school in horse-drawn wagons."
Asked about a common criticism of the past or at least, a perception
Holman said as long as he was superintendent, he never received one
parent's complaint about Navajo children having "their mouths
washed out with soap" or any other punishment for speaking the
Diné language in school.
Holman followed that with a disclaimer: "Now, I'm not here to
say it didn't happen."
More than 30 years ago, the BIA had a "very intense" English
as a Second Language program, he said. Teachers were instructed to
give their charges heavy English language saturation.
"The other big change is Navajo is no longer students' primary
language when they come to school," Holman said. "But then,
neither is English."
He blames dual-language problems on increased television viewing.
This has led to Navajo children having serious difficulty functioning
in either language, he said.
Navajo parents of the 1960s and 1970s were asking BIA teachers to
give their children the best English instruction possible, Holman
said. English was viewed as the language of economic opportunity.
The Diné language was de-emphasized as a sacrifice for better
communication with the outside world, but the downside has been a
Native American language in danger of extinction with its youth.
"Nowadays, I don't hear that," Holman said of de-emphasizing
Diné. "Parents want to preserve their Navajo language.
We're experiencing a shortage of really good Navajo language instructors."
Some things remain
On the other hand, Holman has seen a lot of constants. Esther Price
has been his secretary for 20 years. Bea Woodward, an agency assistant
superintendent, has worked with Holman for 30 years.
The BIA building he works in opened in 1964, and Holman has occupied
his second-floor office for 29 years. It contains some fine paintings
and designs created by students from the Institute of American Indian
Arts of Santa Fe, formerly funded by the BIA and now by Congress.
Just behind his desk on the wall is a figure made of rug sections
that has thin fringes hanging from the base, capped by beads.
"I've had people come and go from this office for 29 years, and
they still don't know what to call it," Holman said. "Some
sort of sun figure is all I know."
For Holman there is also the familiarity of living in a government-provided
Crownpoint home that he paid for "several times over" in
rent. But he can't retire here.
"As I'm not a member of the Navajo tribe, there's no land base
for me here to move to," Holman said.
The past has been a time of economic hope and despair, Holman remembers.
He worked through the "boom" period of Crownpoint-area uranium
mining, "when the town was saturated with non-Navajos,"
and the bust period that followed in the 1970s.
What should follow
Former BIA schools that have become "grant" schools, which
Holman terms the inevitable phenomenon that will allow Navajo self-determination
of its federally funded schools, is not occurring without a price.
There have been some problems, especially in the area of school board
accountability, but Holman said these growing pains were to be expected
when the Tribally Controlled Schools Act was passed in 1988.
The Grant Conversion and Maintenance Handbook prescribing procedures
and rules is slowly being distributed throughout the Navajo reservation.
It contains federal law in such specific areas such as prohibiting
nepotism in school hiring decisions, a widely acknowledged problem
these schools face.
"The tribe has some very strong nepotism laws of its own,"
Holman said.
Holman has been working with Genevieve Jackson, director of the Division
of Diné Education, on creating a Navajo Education Department.
Once schools achieve grant status, a process that must be renewed
every three years, they become tribally operated nonprofit entities.
The tribe needs to have the authority to monitor and evaluate these
schools, to provide licensures, assistance and supervision, Holman
said. Only then can there be true accountability.
"This doesn't mean local control of the schools by officialdom
in Window Rock," he cautioned. "It doesn't mean that at
all."
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Dodgers 0-2 in 9&10 league
Michael Peretti
Staff Sports Writer
GALLUP — The Dodgers were unable to win in either of their attempts
on Friday night at Stafie Memorial Field at Veterans Memorial Park.
The Gallup Dodgers put up a fight early before falling to the Indians
14-8 in the late game and in the early game the Window Rock Dodgers
were no match for the Tohatchi Tigers, falling 13-1 in four innings.
Indians 14, Dodgers 8
The Dodgers were able to keep up with the Indians for two innings
but then the Indians defense held up and pulled away.
The Dodgers jumped out to an early 2-0 lead with a pair of runs in
the first. Mariah Chavez led off the game with a walk and then scored
along with Jeremy McCray on a Ryan Acothley hit to put the Dodgers
ahead.
In the bottom of the first, the Indians took control by scoring four
runs on three hits and two walks.
The Dodgers came right back in the top of the second and took the
lead again, scoring five runs on three hits and four walks to take
a 7-4 lead. The first four Dodger batters reached first with Tyler
Hoskie and Mariah Chavez getting walks and Cody Paiz and Paul Chavez
getting hits before the Indians could get an out.
The Indians matched their first inning in the second, scoring four
more runs on two hits. Dominic Hoedebeck started the
inning reaching base by getting hit by a pitch and then Wesley Brown
brought him in with a triple. Getting the other hit in the inning
was Anthony Baldonado with a single to tie the game at seven. Eric
Montano was walked and scored the go ahead run on a passed ball.
In the third, the Dodgers loaded the bases with one out but the Indian
defense held and got two straight strikeouts to get out of the inning
without giving up a run.
The Indians then took control in the bottom of the inning, scoring
five runs on four hits. Anthony Baldonado hit a bases loaded triple
to score three but was then picked off trying for an in-the-park home
run.
Ryan Acothley scored the final run for the Dodgers in the top of the
fourth on a passed ball.
The Indians put up a final run in the bottom of the inning.
Instead, the Indians had to go onto the field one last time and have
their defense stop the Dodgers in their final at-bat.
The Indians started the inning off by getting the lead off batter
out but then Paul Chavez and Yvonne Morales reached first.
Chavez was thrown out at third and Morales was caught in a force out
on a hit for the final out of the game.
Picking up the win was Wesley Brown going the distance giving up eight
runs in five innings of work. Brown struck out seven.
With the loss for the Dodgers was Cody Paiz giving up 14 runs in four
innings of work. Paiz struck out seven.
Leading hitter for the Indians was Anthony Baldonado going 3-for-3
with a triple and a pair of singles. Leading the way for the Dodgers
was Ryan Acothley going 2-for-2 with a pair of singles and a walk.
Tohatchi Tigers 13, Window Rock Dodgers 1 4 innings
The Tigers jumped on the Dodgers in the first inning of the early
game and never looked back, giving up only one run in the top of the
fourth.
Ryan Begay reached in the final inning with one out for the Dodgers
and then scored on a double by Tyler Sundown for the teams' only run
of the game.
The Tigers did not need their at bat in the fourth, winning on the
10-run mercy rule with only three at bats.
The Tigers scored three runs in the first scoring three runs on three
hits and a walk.
The Tigers continued to score in the second, putting up six runs on
four hits and three walks. The Tigers scored six of their first seven
batters, with only one batter getting thrown out at home plate for
the first out. Sylvester Spencer hit an in-the-park home run to score
three of the runs in the inning for the Tigers.
In the third the Tigers scored their last four runs, scoring on three
hits and two walks. The Tigers stranded one runner in each inning,
three in the game total.
The Dodgers had several opportunities to score, but could not get
the runs in.
In the first inning the Dodgers had Josh Billison on second with one
out but after a strikeout he was thrown out at home trying to score
on a single by Aaron Billy.
In the second the Dodgers stranded one and then in the third they
put four runners on but could not get any runs. The Dodgers put their
lead-off batter, Tyler Sundown on but he was thrown out stealing third.
They then loaded the bases but could not score any, leaving all three
on base.
In the fourth the Dodgers stranded one runner on third.
Picking up the win for the Tigers was Sylvester Spencer going four
innings giving up one run on four hits and four walks and one hit
batter. Spencer struck out seven.
With the loss for the Dodgers was Aaron Billy going three innings
giving up 13 runs on 10 hits and five walks. Billy got six of the
nine outs in the game off strikeouts.
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Navajo Nation works with state on road
issues
Editor's note: This is the first of three stories from an interview
with Navajo Nation President Kelsey A. Begaye.
Jim Maniaci
Dine' Bureau
WINDOW ROCK — A major roadblock to improving travel on the eastern
part of the Navajo Reservation was removed when New Mexico Gov. Gary
Johnson signed a bill to resolve rights-of-way conflicts.
Navajo Nation President Kelsey A. Begaye said in an interview that
it is cooperation with the Navajo Nation Council that contributed
a great deal with that.
"It was a battle between the Navajo Nation and the New Mexico
Department of Transportation. Again here, the Navajo Nation
Executive Branch with the Resources Committee with the Transportation
and Community Development Committee coming together as a team, worked
through negotiations to solve the issue. Again this was a big step,"
Begaye said.
The bill provides for negotiated agreements between the two governments
to cover construction, law enforcement and emergency services on highway
rights-of-way crossing the reservation. Both sole jurisdiction, joint
jurisdiction and coordination are allowed to be settled in the contract...
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Yavapai baskets tell tales at museum
PRESCOTT, Ariz. (AP) — Yavapai baskets, beautiful as well as
durable, tell many stories.
The lightweight baskets were used for traveling, and their makers
wove them so tightly that they could hold water.
While the Yavapai baskets served as cooking vessels, suitcases and
canteens throughout history, they also display the intricate designs
that Yavapai women delicately wove with strips of willow and devils
claw. Those designs all have stories behind them.
"They were singing songs when they made these baskets,"
explained Sandy Lynch, curator of anthropology for the Sharlot Hall
Museum in Prescott. "These carried stories of their history..."
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Winner running from past
Santiago Ramos
Staff Sports Writer
ZUNI — He's a recovering alcoholic, having been sober for the
past year. He's a high school dropout who had a chance at becoming
a top long distance runner but messed up his chances by drinking
and smoking. Now with a second chance at life, he's on the road
to recovery.
Zuni's Fabian Eustace easily claimed top individual honors as he
cruised to first place in the 10K race Friday afternoon during the
first event of the 19th Annual Zuni Fitness Series.
Running in his third straight Zuni Fitness Series, Eustace won the
10K run, which drew a field of 47, by an impressive two minute and
40 second margin.
"I'm a recovering alcoholic," the 20-year-old Eustace
said after winning the 10K. "I've been sober for a year. In
my early years I smoked and drank. I never achieved my goals. I
ran cross country but never made it to district or state. My coach
Robert Torres said I would have been the top runner at Zuni High.
Now I train in the hills and it's seemed to have paid off. I love
running. It's a good stress reliever. Now there's more to life..."
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Correction
The actual increase in unrestricted net assets for Rehoboth McKinley
Christian Health Care Services in 2000 was $455,930.
The figure was incorrect in an article in Wednesday's Independent,
entitled "County approves half of tax for RMCH."
Also, county voters in November 2000 gave the county commission
authority to approve up to two mills annually for hospital improvements.
The article incorrectly reported that the vote was two years ago.
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Green convicted of bigamy
PROVO, Utah (AP) — Following a guilty verdict
in the state's first bigamy trial in nearly 50 years, a county attorney
here said more prosecutions may be on the way.
Tom Green, 52, was convicted on four counts of bigamy and one count
of failing to pay child support Friday.
He lives in a remote stretch of Utah desert with five wives and
25 children. Green now faces up to 25 years in prison and $25,000
in fines. Sentencing was set for June 27...
Abortion pill available
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Planned Parenthood
will begin offering Tucson women the "abortion pill",
better known as RU-486, next week.
The pill, actually a series of drugs, was approved by the
Food and Drug Administration in September after a 10-year political
battle. RU-486 ends early pregnancies without surgery.
Appointments to obtain the RU-486 are now being scheduled to start
next week, said officials at Planned Parenthood of Southern Arizona...
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Deaths
Sampson Chavez Henio
PINEDALE — Services for Sampson Chavez, 35, will be held at 10
a.m., Monday, May 21 at Rollie Mortuary-Palm Chapel. Pastor Bobby
Martinez will officiate. Burial will follow at the Gallup City Cemetery.
Henio died May 16. He was born Jan. 24, 1966 in Pinedale into the
Bitterwater People Clan for the Apache People Clan.
Henio was employed as a firefighter with the BIA Branch of Forestry
and was a wood carver, silversmith and artist.
Survivors include his wife, Lorinda Henio of Pinedale; son, Shawn
C. Henio of Pinedale; brothers, Woody Jim Jr. of Church Rock, Bobby
Jones of Prewitt and Kenneth Jones Sr. of Pinedale; and sisters, Irene
Betoni of Bloomfield, Linda James, Elisa Johnson and Leann Nez all
of Gallup, Delsey Morgan of Church Rock.
Henio was preceded in death by his parents, Sam and Betty Henio and
sister, Loretta Lynn Henio.
Pallbearers will be Juan Betonie III, Woody Jim Jr., Bobby Jones,
Boots Maria, Richard White and Ricky White.
Rollie Mortuary is in charge of arrangements.
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