Tribe acts in conjunction with 200th anniversary of Treaty of Fort
                              Industry on July 4

    TOLEDO, Ohio, June 30 /PRNewswire/ -- The Ottawa Tribe of Oklahoma today
initiated legal action to lay claim to its commercial fishing and land rights
on Lake Erie and Ohio's North Bass Island.  The rights are currently being
denied by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
    (Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050630/CLTH037
            http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050701/CLF040-a
            http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050701/CLF040-b )
    The Ottawas once controlled a large portion of northwest Ohio in the 1700s
and used North Bass Island as an outpost for fishing, hunting and trade.  By
signing the Treaty of Fort Industry on July 4, 1805, the Ottawas gave up some
of their land on North Bass Island and received perpetual hunting and fishing
rights in Ohio's waters.  Current members of the tribe are challenging the
state's regulation and restriction of those rights.  Furthermore, the tribe is
seeking approximately 300 acres of land on the northern half of North Bass
Island, which, despite what state officials say, was never relinquished by the
Ottawas.
    This morning, the tribe filed suit in federal district court in Toledo to
seek a declaratory judgment that the fishing and hunting rights granted by the
Treaty of Fort Industry cannot be regulated or limited by the state.  As a
result, the state would not be allowed to regulate methods of fishing and
quantities or species of fish to be taken; fishing and hunting seasons; and
quantities and types of game to be taken.
    In addition, to signify its claim to the land, and the hunting and fishing
rights, several leaders of the 2,000-member tribe took an hour-long ride by
fishing boat from Port Clinton to North Bass Island.  Tribe members landed on
the northern half of the island, which is currently an undeveloped state park,
located in Ohio's Ottawa County approximately 18 miles off Port Clinton and 2
miles south of the Canadian border on Lake Erie.
    In taking these actions, the tribe is emphasizing that its current focus
is on protecting its fishing and land rights on Lake Erie in U.S. territory
and Ohio's North Bass Island.  The tribe is not currently reviewing any
specific options, and has made no decision, on any uses for the claimed land.
Therefore, these disputes have nothing to do with the ongoing controversy over
casino gambling in Ohio, which is currently illegal in the state.
    "We had never seen our homeland and it is beautiful," said Larry Angelo,
Ottawa Tribe second chief and tribal historian, who is an eighth-generation
descendant of one of the Ottawas' most famous leaders, Chief Pontiac.  "Our
point is that we have always had the hunting and fishing rights, and the state
cannot restrict them.  On the land claims, we believe the northern half of
North Bass Island remains the Ottawas' rightful territory.  It is very
meaningful that we are pursuing these actions as we approach the 200th
anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Fort Industry."
    If the litigation filed today is successful, the Ottawas would like to
begin gill net fishing on Lake Erie, which could yield 2,000 tons of fish or
more per year for the Ottawas.  The tribe has already formed the Ottawa Tribe
of Oklahoma Fisheries Corp. in anticipation of being able to begin commercial
fishing of the Lake Erie waters.
    The Ottawas have acknowledged that, by signing the Treaty of Fort
Industry, they ceded control of other parts of Ohio to the United States.
However, at that time, according to tribal research and several independent
experts, the northern half of North Bass Island was on the Canadian side of
the border and was not covered by the Treaty of Fort Industry or any
subsequent treaty.
    "The U.S.-Canadian boundary moved north of the island in 1822, and no
treaty was ever made with respect to this portion of the island," said Richard
D. Rogovin, the Columbus attorney who is representing the Ottawa Tribe.  "The
Ottawas never ceded their rights to the northern half of North Bass Island,
and, therefore, they are the rightful owners of this property.  By challenging
the land claims, state officials forced us into filing the suit for Lake Erie
fishing rights so that the Ottawas have a steady stream of income to support
the longer-term land litigation efforts."
    Later this year, the Ottawas expect to make their legal case in the land
rights dispute.  Because they may not be able to sue the state directly for
the land, the Ottawas will seek involvement from the federal government to
take up the land case against the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.  The
Ottawas expect that the income from the fully restored hunting and fishing
rights will be used, in part, to support research and litigation related to
the land rights dispute.  As part of the land litigation, the Ottawas have the
option of seeking damages for loss of use of the island over the years.

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