Colorado River Indian Tribes (CRIT) Threatens to Evict Waterfront Residents
By HOWARD MARKLE
The Desert Independent
February 16, 2004
BLYTHE, CA – Recently, letters have been written by the board of directors of West Bank Homeowners Association to its members; to Capt. Dan Ison, Riverside County Sheriffs Department; and Roy Wilson, Riverside County Supervisor, expressing fear that members face eviction from their homes located in what's known as the Colorado River Disputed Area, more particularly "Paradise Point". The association has reason to believe that their landlord, the Colorado River Indian Tribes (CRIT), is about to evict all residents in this and other river-front locations. This area has been disputed, as to ownership, for many years; however, residents who live there pay rent to the Tribe. Residents have an occupancy permit issued by the Tribe and rent is paid based on the amount of water frontage. Residents claim that the Tribe has no right to evict them, epically without due process. Some residents rent from holders of the permits, a kind of sub-let.
Members were advised last September to remove all personal property from their residences in order "to prepare for the worst". The second paragraph of the latest letter, dated February 9, 2004 reads, "The U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled to make a decision February 20, 2004, on whether the court will hear our case, with an announcement to follow Monday, February 23. Since the Supreme Court hears less than 10% of cases submitted, it is unlikely that they will hear our case. If the Supreme Court decides not to hear the case, we will have no current legal challenge to CRIT jurisdiction in the disputed area."
Some letters supplied to us here at The Desert Independent, dated February 20, 2004, are form-letters addressed to Sheriff Bob Doyle asking him to enforce the law against unlawful eviction. Residents are fearful of an abrupt and unlawful eviction that might include an attempt to destroy or confiscate their personal property. The dispute remains unresolved because of "the Tribe's invocation of their sovereign immunity." If an attempted eviction is based on a "citizen's arrest", the Sheriff's department will receive phone calls from residents requesting assistance. Letter-writers are living under permits issued by CRIT and that an eviction must be carried out by due process (Public Law 280), which means obtaining a court order. If a judicial remedy fails, residents ask the Sheriff to enforce the law. Since the Sheriff has not responded to letters written by the association, each resident and permitee is asked by the association to send a letter to the Sheriff, a letter-writing campaign as such. A sentence from one Association letter reads, "Therefore, due to his mute stance, we do not expect the Sheriff to uphold the law." The letter further warns residents to remove all personal possessions such as vehicles, boats, PWC's, and quads; it also reminds residents of the actions taken last year by the Chemehuevi at Havasu when a federal judge ruled against the residents.
We wonder if issues like this are causes for Blythe’s apparent dysfunction. The once-meandering Colorado River that created boundary disputes and water dispensing problems just might be enough of a deterrent for those who might wish to settle here; the Colorado is not likely to jump its banks again unless a dam fails, but the disputes over land and water continue. Will our farms go the way of the orange groves, and are we ready for some big-time recreation, golfin' and gamblin'? Or should we just leave things as they are, relatively unattractive to the untrained eye?