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Dear Chairman Smith,

Your plot to disenroll the descendents of Margarita Brittain was

long in the making. We know that you spent many years putting

together this conspiracy that separates us from our people, our

heritage, our land, and our rightful legacy. Your plan was to

eliminate opposition by removing a voting block that oftenquestions your self-serving decisions, and to the extent that we

can no longer participate in Tribal Government, your plan has

worked.

Step 1: You hired Sarah Dutschke, a lawyer who specializes in

disenrollment, back in 2007. She drafted the Enrollment Ordinance

to the Constitution that transferred the power to determine

enrollment away from the General Council to the Enrollment

Committee. This was because you dont trust the people you

represent to make decisions, even though you derive all of your

power from the people.

Step 2: You duped the General Council into making the Executive

Committee the Enrollment Committee, meaning that it only takes 3

votes to remove a person from the tribe. The Council Members

probably didnt realize that these powers should be separate

because of the opportunities for abuse; now they know all too

well.

Step 3: You made certain that the individual responsible for

approval of the revised Enrollment Ordinance was the BIA Regional

Director, Amy Dutschke. There were no questions asked, and

approval was easily obtained despite the fact that it is both a

civil rights and constitutional violation to use the Enrollment

Ordinance for disenrollment. Perhaps this is because Amy Dutschke

is Sarah Dutschkes aunt.

Step 4: You directed all appeals to the BIA Regional Director,

Amy Dutschke. Despite your claims that membership is an internal

Tribal matter, appeals are directed to an outside sovereign

because you wanted to wash your hands of us. Once you removed us

from the tribe, your goal was to refuse contact, communication,

and any opportunity for reinstatement.

Step 5: You framed the appeal process in terms of the Enrollment

Ordinance. That means Amy Dutschke is actually using the

Enrollment Ordinance as the guideline for her decision on the

appeal. This is despite the fact that the BIA is not bound by the

Tribal Constitution in any way, and even though the BIA long ago

determined that we fulfill the requirements for enrollment.

Step 6: The coup de grace was changing the BIA decision power on

appeal into only a recommendation. This change serves two

purposes. It keeps the BIA from overturning the disenrollments,

and actually lets the BIA off the hook. They can rule in

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accordance with their past decisions and never reveal their

complicity with the Executive Committee in enabling

disenrollments.

I know describing disenrollment in this way gives you too much

credit. You are not such a clever person. You just wanted to get

rid of people who wouldnt let you roll them over. The actualmechanism of disenrollment was concocted by shrewd lawyers. There

was no such thing as mass disenrollments before the casino money,

the lawyers, and the corruption came along. Now it is the weapon

of choice for Tribal leaders looking to eliminate opposition,

take revenge on perceived enemies, intimidate the remaining

members, and make sure there are no questions asked about the

money.

Let us take this opportunity to notify you that we have new

evidence. These are Bureau of Indian Affairs Census records from

the National Archives and Records Administration dating to 1923,

1924, and 1925. They clearly show Margarita Brittain as fullblood Indian, and her children as half blood. We will submit this

evidence to the Executive Committee, adding it to the

preponderance of evidence that proves our eligibility for

enrollment. The Executive Committee claimed that they made an

exhaustive search of the records, but they never produced these

BIA Census Records.

Could it be that claims of an exhaustive search were an

exaggeration? We believe this is the case not only because these

records were not discovered by the Executive Committee, but also

because of the glaring omission of the probate records that

combine personal testimony with documented evidence naming

Margarita Brittain and Merced Nolasquez half sisters with the

same father, Pelegrino Ortega. These statements were used by the

BIA as conclusive evidence that Margarita Brittain was full

blood. We do not need more evidence. This was already decided

long ago, but in the slim chance that you actually look at the

evidence we will dutifully present these recently found

documents.

Your response will speak volumes. You could do the right thing.

You could announce the discovery of new evidence and suspend the

disenrollments pending a review of our applications in light of

the new evidence. This would be in accordance with your

obligation to uphold the Tribal Constitution. Anything less would

be a violation of your sworn duty. Or you could continue to

disregard the preponderance of the evidence and cling to the 1928

California Indian Roll which was never meant to show blood degree

or tribal membership. Will you hold this up like some Holy Grail

of truth in regards to the blood degree of the descendents of

Margarita Brittain? Will you then mouth some platitudes like:

This new evidence doesnt change anything, or Whats right is

right, and We are sovereign, so no one can decide for us?

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This has been your stand all along. No amount of evidence seems

able to convince you. Not the superior records and the expertise

of the BIA document specialist. Not the 1913 Allotment Roll,

which is the basis for Federal Recognition of the Tribe itself.

Not the direct testimony of Carolina Nolasquez, verified by her

siblings, and substantiated by family history card. Not theconsistent reporting on Census records. None of this has swayed

you. You hold the disenrollees to a higher standard than the

other members of the Tribe. There are few of them that can come

anywhere near providing such conclusive evidence of their blood

degree as we have.

In the past you did well for our people. We are thankful for

those times, for before we were impoverished, and then the Tribe

provided income, health care, and hope for the future. Somehow it

all changed. You used our money to pay for the lawyers that

helped you cast us out. You continue to deny the truth of our

blood. You pretend this was the right thing to do, and thatsomehow the Tribe is better off without us. This is an ugly

picture painted with hate, and not good for you, the Executive

Committee, the tribe, or the future of Pala.

We believe you are a failure as a leader, a petty dictator who

cares little for truth, who is smitten with power, and hides

behind the shield of sovereignty. We dare you to prove us wrong.

This is your chance to change the way you are regarded in

history, to improve the morale of the people, and even to bring

more business to the Casino. Perhaps you have seen the decline in

the Pechanga Casino; their leaders are facing trouble and much of

it has to do with disenrollment and the way they treat

disenrollees. You could make Pala look good by comparison. Pala

could be the Tribe that corrects its mistakes, treats its people

fairly, and is the better gambling destination because they care.

The Tribe elected you because you promised to uphold the

Constitution, to promote the welfare of the people, and to govern

in accordance with the Tribe's best interests. Your record is in

direct opposition to those noble aspirations. Your people look to

you for justice and integrity. To this point they look in vain.

We await your response.

Signed,

Margaritas Children