Treaty of Ruby Valley (1863) - Attempts at Settlement

Attempts At Settlement

The United States Congress had attempted to settle the agreement in 1979, appropriating $26 million to purchase title to 24 million acres (97,000 km²) of tribal lands. In 1985, the US Supreme Court ruled that the settlement extinguished Shoshone claims to the land.

Chiefs Frank Temoke and Frank Brady adamantly refused the government payoff at Battle Mountain, Nevada on December 11, 1992. Temoke was sure that the Shoshone would lose their claim to the lands if they accepted the funds. He said, "I did not sign any agreement for money. The actions of the federal government are unconstitutional, immoral, genocide and against international law." Brady urged his people to refuse the settlement also, saying, "The people need land, not money." They both faced immense pressure from their own people to sell out because many of the Shoshone wanted the money. Brady said, "Some say we've lost the land already and that may be so, but we still have a fighting chance if we don't take the government payment." By 1998 the value of the settlement had increased to $100 million and it continues to grow.

The United States Federal Government passed the Western Shoshone Claims Distribution Act of 2004, which authorized payment of $145 million for the transfer of 25 million acres (101,000 km²) to the United States. Seven of the nine tribal councils within the Western Shoshone Nation passed resolutions opposing the legislation.

On March 10, 2006 the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination stated "credible information alleging that the Western Shoshone indigenous people are being denied their traditional rights to land." On January 17, 2006, the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Western Shoshone National Council against the United States of America that sought to quiet title to lands whose boundaries were defined by the Treaty of Ruby Valley (See 415 F. Supp. 2d 1201).