December Document Site

https://sites.google.com/site/stopthejail/executive-docs

Certified Letter to Cong. Smith's Staff after Dec. 19, 2011 meeting

Dear Ms. Entenman,

Thank you for taking the time to meet with us December 19, 2011. Mr. , Mr.  and I appreciated the time and effort you and your staff have taken to compile information regarding the proposed Nisqually Regional Jail in Olympia, Washington.

We are requesting further assistance from Congressman Adam Smith and his staff regarding this project. This letter is a formal written request to Congressman Smith asking him to stop construction of this facility. Congressman Smith was involved in the initial land transfer to the Nisqually Indian Tribe where the proposed jail is being considered. We hope that Congressman Smith will take an active role and look into this proposed project and how there are several things on a local, state and federal level that can be done to stop this complex from being built in its currently proposed location.

We have requested Ms. Entenman to come to the proposed site for a site visit scheduled for the first Friday in January. This date is Friday, January 7, 2012 at 10:00 a.m. The address of the proposed jail is:  11702 Yelm Highway Se. Olympia, Washington 98513. At this time Mr. , Mr.  and I,   plan to attend this meeting and will wait at the above address for Ms. Entenman.   Please confirm this scheduled appointment at your earliest convenience.

Enclosed please see correspondence from Stop the Jail Association to the Nisqually Indian Tribe. In this letter dated, October 20, 2011, our organization requested specific information regarding the proposed jail and site location. We also sent to the tribe documentation regarding FOIA requests and case law that indicated that Indian Tribes cannot claim exemption from Freedom of Information Acts. We have never received any information back from the Nisqually tribe since this request. These letters was sent via certified mail, see attached receipt and attached signature upon delivery.

Also, enclosed is the information we received back from the Department of the Army, September 29, 2011. As mentioned in our meeting, the Department of the Army met with the Nisqually Indian Tribe back in 2008. In this letter dated, August 20, 2008, the staff conclude that other locations to house this proposed regional jail was likely to be determined “not feasible” by the Nisqually Tribe and they further

concluded that the Nisqually Tribe would “pursue development on their own 168 acre parcel north of Hwy 510. In this letter the Army does suggest alternatives to the Nisqually Indian tribe for the proposed jail, however the Nisqually Indian tribe has repeatedly stated that “no alternative location was available” as quoted from their Environmental assessment report, July 2010 and said at local meetings.

We look forward to talking with you and your staff further regarding this issue.

Have a Happy Holiday and a Safe New Year.

Sincerely,

Stop the Jail Association

4570 Avery Lane SE

Suite C

PMB #145

Lacey, Wa. 98503

Enclosures:

1.            FOIA request to the Nisqually Indian Tribe dated, October 20, 2011, with copy of certified receipt.

2.            Department of the Army correspondence between the Nisqually Indian Tribe dated June 2, 2008 and August 20, 2008

3.            Department of Correction letter dated December 14, 2011 re: contract to house inmates with the Nisqually Indian Tribe.

Meeting Notes Dec. 19, 2011 with Cong. Smith's Office

We met with Congressman Smith's office on Monday, December 19th, 2011, in their Tacoma Office. We met with Community Outreach Manager, Debra Entenman. In this meeting Ms. Entenman provided the HR laws that Congressman Smith endorsed regarding the land exchange between Thurston County, The US Army Corps of Engineers and the Nisqually Indian Tribe. Ms. Entenman also provided other facts that our organization had already obtained through public information months ago. We left this meeting still requesting Congressman Smith's help. We followed up the meeting with a certified letter requesting the assistance from Cong. Smith to stop the construction of the jail. We hope our Government will look into the fraudulent means in obtaining the grant including the notification process, the environmental impacts, the contractual misrepresentations showing the need for this project as well as other glaring misrepresentations. See attached note of the certified letter to Ms. Entenman.

Congressman Adam Smith

Congressman Adam Smith's office has finally scheduled an official meeting with us. We started communicating with Congressman Smith's office back in early August 2011. Apparently, their office needed to collect information from the agencies involved, The Nisqually Tribe, The Bureau of Indian Affairs, Department of Justice, Fort Lewis and now are ready to meet with us. We will let you know what Congressman Smith can do to help our community and why he was involved in the original land exchange in the first place! The meeting is scheduled for December 19, 2011.