June 9, 2006
By STEVE KADEL
H&N Staff Writer
Some Modoc Point Irrigation District members are suing the district's board of
directors for negligence and financial mismanagement.
Among issues raised in their lawsuit is
an allegation the board put as much as $2 million in federal funds, intended
for district use, into a private bank account.
Defendants are board members Pete Bourdet, Roy Gienger, Brian Allen, Daryel
Zierke and Arthur Atchinson. The civil suit was filed in Klamath County
Circuit Court.
Medford attorney Melinda Cauvin, who is both a plaintiff and attorney for the
plaintiffs, said in court documents she heard Bourdet say federal funds meant
for the irrigation district's Chiloquin dam removal project were deposited in
a bank account that is not the district's account.
She said Bourdet controls or has access to the account holding the funds.
Cauvin downplayed her statement in court documents when interviewed Thursday,
saying no one is blaming board members of wrongdoing. Instead, she said the
lawsuit's goal is to find out if Bureau of Indian Affairs money has been
misused.
BIA money would be used for an endowment to pay for running irrigation pumps
after the dam is removed, Martinis said.
Bourdet declined Thursday to comment on an ongoing lawsuit. However, defense attorney Mike Martinis of Salem called the comments about his clients “serious allegations.”
“There was never any money paid out (by BIA),” he said.
“Once it comes in it will go into a Modoc account.”
He said all charges in the lawsuit are untrue, and he is considering a
defamation of character lawsuit against plaintiffs.
“Everything I have investigated shows there is no foundation in law or in
fact,” Martinis said.
Martinis said he looked at more than
8,000 pages of documents plaintiffs have requested. Those include e-mails,
correspondence, calendar entries and banking records related to the district's
dam removal project.
The petition also alleges board members and the irrigation district breached
fiduciary responsibilities and violated Oregon law by spending money for
purposes other than allowed by statutes.
The lawsuit claims proper elections have not been conducted
for district board positions, and board meetings are conducted in a way that
“impairs meaningful participation by owners of land within MPID.”
Plaintiffs also contend the board has “conducted the affairs of MPID in a
manner that would result in a disproportionate benefit to their own lands.”
Other plaintiffs to the lawsuit are Bill and Myrna Boyd and Loren Walch.