8/9/2019 NY Times 4.27.2000 Indian Tribe Offers Landowners a
Conditional Deal
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their concern that separating the defendants would deprive the
counties of involvement
in the legal process.
''Our first reaction is that we are very disappointed,'' said
Ralph J. Eannace Jr., the
Oneida County Executive, and Rocco J. DiVeronica, chairman of
the Madison County
Board of Supervisors, in a statement. ''To provide true relief,
the claims against
individual landowners have to be removed permanently.''
State officials, meanwhile, had a mixed reaction. Michael
McKeon, a spokesman for
Gov. George E. Pataki, repeated Mr. Pataki's calls that the
federal government withdraw
from the lawsuit altogether.
At the same time, though, Mr. McKeon said that ''if the rhetoric
of the press release is
matched by reality, then we will give it serious
consideration.''
Leon Koziol, a Utica lawyer who has become a de facto legal
representative for many of
the affected landowners, said that although he was wary of the
Oneidas and the state,
the offer did contain a sliver of hope. ''It is a step in the
right direction,'' he said, ''but
ultimately the landowners want to see that the clouds be removed
altogether.''
The federal government continues to oppose the eviction of the
landowners while
maintaining the hope that a fair settlement can still be
reached, said James F. Simon, a
deputy assistant attorney general.
The Oneidas' offer came one day before all the parties were
expected to tell Judge
McCurn whether they felt the case should go to trial or whether
there should be one last
attempt at settlement talks.
Most participants believe that a trial is all but inevitable;
only last month, a court-
appointed mediator, Ronald J. Riccio, announced that a year's
worth of settlement talks
had broken down because of differences over money, gambling on
the tribal land and
other issues.
So yesterday, officials who have been tracking the dispute
expressed cautious, almost
desperate, optimism that something good could come from the
Oneidas' latest
suggestion.
''Depending on the details, this could be a very positive step
forward,'' said SenatorCharles E. Schumer, who has been among the
most vocal officials supporting the
landowners. ''The grossest unfairness has been putting these
innocent small
homeowners and shopkeepers in the middle, making them the pawns
in this dispute.''
Map of New York highlighting Syracuse: The Oneida Indians claim
270,000 acres of
land in central New York.
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n Tribe Offers Landowners a Conditional Deal - NYTimes.com
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/04/27/nyregion/indian-tribe-offers-
6/15/2010
