OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations have asked a judge to order federal agencies to provide greater transparency in how they have managed tribal trust assets.
The Oklahoman reports that they filed a lawsuit nearly 10 years ago, claiming the U.S. government mismanaged valuable tribal timber lands. The government, serving as a trustee for the tribes, had sold large amounts of the groups' land during the first half of the 1900s.
The tribes now want a full accounting in how the government managed their trust assets and want to be compensated for property that was "wasted, lost or unaccounted for."
If current mediation efforts fail, a trial is scheduled to begin in July.
Government attorneys dispute many of the tribes' claims.