TRIBE: Courts just don't work

There is no other court in the land where victims are made into aggressors as much as the Coeur d'Alene tribal court. Where protection orders protecting children are ignored and the parents of the protected child are treated as criminals. Where the tribal Stop Violence program helps perpetrators remove the barriers of a protection order to be better able to harm their victims. Only in tribal court does this happen. I should know, since the injustice of the tribal court came to roost on my door.

My daughter, 10, is the victim of bullying here in Worley. The family of the kids bullying, as well as assaulting, my child could not be reasoned with so I had no choice but to apply for, and be granted, a protection order for my daughter to stop the bullying and assaults. All was well until the family harassing my child violated our protection order and I called the tribal police to stop it. They violated it by coming up to her and telling her what they could do to her and no one could stop them. In short, they would not leave her alone.

So upon calling the tribal police, a tribal officer told me they, "would not arrest a child or teenager" for this. Then they told me I call the tribal police too much for these violations of our protection order.

So the aunt of the offending teens, with the help of the Stop Violence program of the tribe and the director Bernie LaSarte, goes to tribal court and files a protection order on me that says if the kids my daughter is protected from violate our protection order and I call the police to report it, I will be in violation of their protection order and can go to jail. Is that justice? No. So at the hearing today, Judge Douglas of the Coeur d'Alene tribal court grants the protection order for this family preventing me from protecting my child by calling the police when they violate the protection order we have in place protecting my 10-year-old. With the help of the Stop Violence program, the tribe has all barriers to assaulting or harassing my child removed. This protection order was granted to the aunt of these kids who harass my child and she just recently was arrested at Bobbi's Bar in Plummer for aggravated assault, as well as assault on a police officer. Remember, Bernie LaSarte and the Stop Violence program helped her.

Tribal court judges either are inept, incompetent or just don't care. Seems all three to me. Be grateful you're not under the jurisdiction of this kangaroo court as I am forced to be. In fact I asked how to just go through Kootenai County and was told I had no choice but go through the tribal court and their severe injustices. Next the tribal court will probably violate my civil rights by saying I can't say or write anything that is considered free speech-guaranteed in our First Amendment under the U.S. Constitution. Stay tuned!

WADE WEEMS

Worley