Subjects
Active cases
Closed cases
Wall of Shame
Please inform the webmaster of any broken links!
| Sites in Need of ProtectionWilliamson Co., Tennessee
http://www.tennessean.com/williamsonam/archives/02/04/16404780.shtml?Element_ID=16404780
Court action is not over in ancient graves case
By PEGGY SHAW
Staff Writer
NASHVILLE — The state's decision to encapsulate ancient Native American graves and then pave over them for new roadways is ''sweeping a problem under the asphalt,'' an attorney for a group of Native Americans said in court Friday.
The problem may not be swept away anytime soon, however, since a new lawsuit is possible in the case that has delayed road widening at Hillsboro Road and Old Hickory Boulevard.
An attempt to amend a March 12 order — an order that dismissed Native American claims that they were not receiving equal protection under the law based on race — failed in Davidson County Chancery Court Friday.
Grounds for a new lawsuit may exist, however, based on the Tennessee Department of Transportation's recent decision to pave over the graves, Judge Ellen Hobbs Lyle ruled.
Joseph Johnston, attorney for the Alliance for Native American Indian Rights in Tennessee and four individuals, said he would consider a new lawsuit with his clients this week.
Johnston had filed motions for the group asking that Native Americans be considered a special ''suspect class'' and that the court consider TDOT's new plan to encapsulate the graves in concrete and then pave over them. Lyle denied the motion to amend her previous ruling, saying that the Native Americans did not have ''party status'' in the current case but only an amicus curiae (friend of the court) status that allows them limited participation.
''The court does not have the authority to give the Native Americans the right to amend the previous decision,'' Lyle said.
On the second motion, Lyle ruled that new information about paving over the graves should be handled in a new lawsuit. ''Those are new facts and allegations, and for that reason they (the plaintiffs) can file a new lawsuit and seek the relief they ask for. They have standing under that legal remedy.''
Johnston said he had expected the decision, but added ''I'm encouraged that she said we could file another lawsuit.''
In his motion, Johnston explained why he had been seeking suspect status for the Native Americans. ''That is a term that is used in Constitutional law … to address the issue of race discrimination.
''When you have a suspect class, you can't rely on just a rational basis (for a decision). The court has to find a compelling state interest.''
When asked about incidences where the state has moved other graves, Johnston replied: ''They don't encapsulate other graves. It's the paving over that is offensive.''
In Franklin earlier this month, Chancery Court Judge Russ Heldman denied motions related to a companion case in Williamson County, saying that his court no longer had jurisdiction in a case involving the state moving the graves, since TDOT had decided to pave over them instead.
Legal battles began three years ago when TDOT, planning to add turning lanes to the intersection, discovered the graves and filed a petition for termination of the land's use as a cemetery. Local Native Americans protested and filed suit in both Williamson and Davidson counties.
Back to main Williamson page
|
