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Ruling on Comanche-Sill dispute coming soon

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.”