June 8, 2023. Frustrated Tribal Members are attempting to recall Tribal Board Members; Kimberly Hampton, Betty Freiheit and Isaac Mc Kechnie.
Two Removal Petitions were submitted against Kimberly Hampton, Unit 4 Director at the June 6th's Sault Tribe Board of Directors Meeting. Supporters of the recall election claim
under Tribal Code: 16.105
Contents of Petition:
The petition shall contain a statement of specific facts which, if true, would constitute a violation of tribal law specified in sub. (3), together with a citation to the provision of the Constitution and Bylaws, ordinance, or resolution violated. The allegations must provide facts which, if true, would establish each element of the violation alleged and which provide sufficient detail so that the accused official can reasonably determine the conduct with which he or she is charged.
A petition may not include more than one ground for removal
(4) If the accused official is a member of the Board of Directors, the petition must be signed by a number of eligible voters equal to or greater than one hundred (100) or 10% of the votes cast in that unit in the last election, whichever is greater. Only original signatures shall be submitted in the petition.
The first petition states:
During the Election Committee Investigations of Allied Printing; the committee recovered documentation (e-mails, Invoices) that provided evidence that Kimberly Hampton "the accused" solicited and/or received campaign contributions from Aaron Payment (and others) in excess of the maximum allowable campaign contribution by any individual over $250.00 and failed to report the donations and expenses.
Grounds for removal/ Tribal ordinance violated - 71.1103 Election Fraud; which reads: 1(B) acts to compromise the integrity of the election, or attempts to do so by falsifying any document, including documents filed with the Tribal Election Committee or Board of
Directors.
The second petition states:
During the Election Committee Investigations of Allied Printing; the committee recovered documentation (e-mails, Invoices) that provided evidence that Kimberly Hampton "the accused" solicited and/or received (and failed to report) campaign contributions from Aaron Payment (and others) in excess of the maximum allowable campaign contribution by any individual over $250.00.
Grounds for removal/ Tribal ordinance violated - 10.113 Campaign Financing. (1) (e) which reads: Candidates shall not solicit or accept aggregate Contributions from any single individual over two hundred fifty dollars($250.00).
This Week Supporters of the recall efforts are gathering signatures to recall Unit One Directors Betty Freiheit and Isaac Mc Kechnie. No further information was provided for the reasons behind these recall efforts. But it may be because of the investigations in DJ Hoffman and his family, a former Unit One Director for many years. Many Tribal Members including those that did not vote for DJ believe the investigations into DJ Hoffman and his family was a waste of our Tribe's Resources and an attempt to squash a political opponent.
