Timbisha Shoshone Tribe v. Kennedy

ORDER ON PLAINTIFFS’ PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION MOTION

Introduction

Plaintiffs Timbisha Shoshone Tribe (“Tribe”), Edward Beaman (“Mr. Beaman”), Virginia Beck (“Ms. Beck”), and Cleaveland Lyle Casey (“Mr. Casey”) (“collectively Plaintiffs”) move for a preliminary injunction, pursuant to Fed. R.Civ.P. 65, against defendants Joseph Kennedy (“Mr. Kennedy”), Madeline Esteves (“Ms. Esteves”), Pauline Esteves, Angela Boland (“Ms. Bond”), and Erick Mason (“Mr. Mason”) (collectively “Defendants”). For the following reasons, this Court DENIES Plaintiffs’ motion for preliminary injunction.

Background

From 2006 through the present, Plaintiffs, Defendants, and others not party to this action have contested the governance of the Tribe fiercely. Governance of the Tribe has split, and two factions have emerged' — one faction based out of Bishop, California (“Bishop faction”) and one faction based out of Death Valley, California (“Death Valley faction”). Plaintiffs are associated with the Bishop faction, Defendants are associated with the Death Valley faction. In an attempt to gain leadership and control over the tribe, funded by dueling Casino prospecting businesses, and separated by geography,…