http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/09/ap_SacredGroundDispute_091808/

Ruling on Comanche-Sill dispute coming soon

By Sean Murphy - The Associated Press
Posted : Friday Sep 19, 2008 6:07:21 EDT

OKLAHOMA CITY — Attorneys for a Lawton-based Indian tribe want a federal
judge to permanently stop construction of a proposed new warehouse at Fort
Sill Army Post they say is being built on sacred land near the Medicine
Bluffs peaks.

“Medicine Bluffs exists not only as a unique crescent of four peaks listed
on the National Register of Historic Places, but also as a sacred church
for Comanche people,” attorneys for the Comanche Nation wrote in a closing
brief filed late Wednesday.

Military officials planned to build a new warehouse to serve as the post’s
Training Service Center about one-third of a mile from Medicine Bluffs as
part of an expansion with the Base Closure and Realignment commission in
2005.

However, U.S. District Judge Timothy D. DeGiusti granted a temporary
restraining order Aug. 19 to stop construction, just days after the lawsuit
was filed on behalf of the Comanche Nation and one of its members, Jimmy
Arterberry, Jr.

The tribe now is seeking a preliminary injunction to stop construction.
Closing briefs for both sides were filed Wednesday, and DeGiusti could
issue a decision in a matter of days.

Bob Troester, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s office in Oklahoma City,
which represents the government, said he couldn’t comment while the case
was pending.

In its filing, the government contends the Comanche Nation was informed
about the plans and never raised an objection until “... the backhoe shovel
is literally poised above the ground.

“Plaintiffs knew that the construction was proceeding and could have
brought this action ten months ago,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Tom Major
wrote in his closing argument filed Wednesday.

Major also stressed the importance of the new training facility in the
military’s mission of preparing soldiers and the significant economic
impact Fort Sill has to the southwest Oklahoma region.

“The United States is now at war,” Major wrote. “Training is the top
priority of the Army. It is the cornerstone of combat readiness. Training
is what Fort Sill does. With BRAC and the new missions and responsibilities
that Fort Sill will assume, as many as 56,000 soldiers, sailors and Marines
may be involved during any given year in the Army fulfilling its training
obligations.”

Comanche Nation Chairman Wallace Coffey could not be reached for comment
Thursday, but has previously said the tribe was not consulted about the
warehouse construction activities near Medicine Bluffs and adamantly
opposes any construction there.

In its filing, the tribe claims the warehouse location is on sacred ground.

“Only at the warehouse site can traditional Comanches have a complete
religious connection with the Bluffs from the traditional approach or — on
special occasions — prepare for ascension of the Bluffs for special
rituals.

“If defendants had asked the Nation or traditional Comanche religious
leaders, they would have learned that Comanches use the warehouse site to
gather plants for use in ceremonies, that the traditional approach to the
peaks is from the south, and that the Comanches consider the warehouse
property to be part of the Medicine Bluffs sacred site.”

One of the attorneys representing the tribe, William R. Norman, said in a
statement he is hopeful the judge will side with the tribe and order a halt
to construction.

“Following three days of intense testimony and a visit to the sacred
Medicine Bluffs site with the judge and representatives of the United
States, the Comanche Nation remains hopeful that the Court will turn its
temporary restraining order against further Army warehouse construction at
the site into a preliminary injunction, thus preserving the traditional
religious and cultural importance of the sight for tribal members adversely
affected by the construction activity.”