UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
                                                  FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA                     .... _ _. ::


                ELOUISE PEPION COBELL, et al.,          )                                                   clx_ _ i 5
                                                                     )
                                 Plaintiffs,               )        Civil Action No. 96-1285 (RCL)
                                                                     )
                    v.                                          )        (Judge Lamberth)
                                                                     )
             GALE A. NORTON, et al.,                    )
                                                                     )
                                 Defendants.            )
                                                                     )
                          THE DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR'S OPPOSITION TO
                                 PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO ADOPT CORRECTED REPORT
                                 OF THE SPECIAL MASTER REGARDING THE DELETION
                              OF INDIVIDUAL INDIAN TRUST INFORMATION BY FORMER
                               ASSISTANT SECRETARY-INDIAN AFFAIRS NEAL MCCALEB
                         On January 27, 2003, the Special Master issued his report (the "Corrected Report") of his
                investigation of allegations that between December 2001 and early October 2002, former
                Assistant Secretary Neal McCaleb failed to print out and file e-mail messages he received and
                may have deleted the messages before they were captured on backup tapes. On February 11,
                2003, plaintiffs moved to adopt the Corrected Report. The Department of the Interior opposes
                plaintiffs motion to adopt the corrected report for the reasons set forth in "The Department of the
                Interior's Objections to Corrected Report of the Special Master Regarding the Deletion of
                Individual Indian Trust Information by Former Assistant Secretary-indian Affairs Neal McCaleb
                ("interior's Opposition"), filed February 10, 2003, which is attached hereto as Exhibit 1, and is
                incorporated by reference herein.
                        As discussed in Interior's Opposition, the Corrected Report made factual findings
                unsupported by the record that the Department of the Interior, as an institution, had failed to take
               required actions to ensure that records were maintained and apparently also made the erroneous





                   findings that Mr. McCaleb deleted e-mails not only from his own e-mail inbox but also from the
                 Department's records. Moreover, the Corrected Report incorrectly described the Master's July
                 27, 2001 opinion as addressing trust records. Finally, the Corrected Report contains an extended
                 and gratuitous discussion concerning Aurene Martin and contains criticism of Ms. Martin which
                 is unwarranted and unsupported. Accordingly, the Department of the Interior respectfully
                 requests that the Court deny plaintiffs' motion to adopt the Corrected Report. A draft order is
                 attached.


                                                             Respectfully submitted,
                                                             ROBERT D. McCALLUM, JR.
                                                             Assistant Attorney General
                                                             STUART E. SCHIFFER
                                                             Deputy Assistant Attomey General
                                                             J. CHRISTOPHER KOHN
                                                             MICHAEL F. HERTZ
                                                             Directors



                                                            Deputy Director
                                                            D.C. Bar No. 261495
                                                            Dodge Wells
                                                            Senior Trial Counsel
                                                            D.C. Bar No. 425194
                                                            Tracy L. Hilmer
                                                            D.C. Bar No. 421219
                                                            Trial Attorney
                                                            Commercial Litigation Branch
                                                            Civil Division
                                                            P.O. Box 261
                                                            Ben Franklin Station
                                                            Washington, D.C. 20044
                                                            (202) 307-0474

                                                                       12-





                                                       UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
                                                  FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

                                                                      )
            ELOUISE PEPION COBELL, et al.,          )
                                                                      )
                               Plaintiffs,               )       Civil Action No. 96-CV-1285 (RCL)
                                                                      )
                  v.                                          )
                                                                      )
            GALE A. NORTON, et al.,                    )
                                                                      )
                               Defendants.            )
                                                                     )
                                                   ORDER
                         Upon consideration of the Plaintiffs' Motion to Adopt the Corrected Report of the Special
                 Master Regarding the Deletion of Individual Indian Trust Information by Former Assistant
                 Secretary-Indian Affairs Neal McCaleb, the opposition thereto of the Department of the Interior,
                 and the entire record in this case, it is this             day of                   ,2003,
                         ORDERED, that the plaintiffs' motion be and hereby is DENIED.



                                                                              Honorable Royce C. Lamberth
                                                                              United States District Judge




                                                             CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
                         I declare under penalt_ of perjury that, on February 25, 2003 1 served the foregoing The
                Department of the Interior's Opposition to PlaintifJ3' Motion to Adopt Corrected Report of the
                Special Master Regarding the Deletion of Individual Indian Trust Information by Former
                Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Neal McCaleb by facsimile in accordance with their written
                request of October 31, 2001 upon:
                Keith Harper, Esq.                                       Dennis M Gingold, Esq.
                Native American Rights Fund                          Mark Kester Brown, Esq.
                 1712 N Street, N.W.                                      1275 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
                Washington, D.C. 20036-2976                         Ninth Floor
                (202) 822-0068                                           Washington, D.C. 20004
                                                                              (202) 318-2372

                By U.S. Mail upon:
                Elliott Levitas, Esq.
                 1100 Peachtree Street, Suite 2800
                Atlanta, GA 30309-4530

                By facsimile and U.S. Mail upon:
                Alan L. Balaran, Esq.
                Special Master
                 1717 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
                 13th Floor
                Washington, D.C. 20006
                (202) 986-8477
                By Hand upon:
                Joseph S. Kieffer, llI
                Special Master Monitor
                420 7 th Street, N.W.
                Apartment 705
                Washington, D.C. 20004
                (202) 478-1958




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