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Nez, chief hearing officer, to be reinstated

Nez, chief hearing officer, to be reinstated

WINDOW ROCK

Office of Hearings and Appeals chief hearing officer Richie Nez, glances at Chris Deschene, whom he disqualified on Oct. 9, on Monday at the Navajo Department of Transportation in Tse Bonito, N.M. (Times photo – Donovan Quintero)

Office of Hearings and Appeals chief hearing officer Richie Nez, glances at Chris Deschene, whom he disqualified on Oct. 9, on Monday at the Navajo Department of Transportation in Tse Bonito, N.M. (Times photo – Donovan Quintero)

Navajo tribal officials are working to try and get Richie Nez reinstated as chief hearing officer for the Navajo Nation Office of Hearings and Appeals.

Nez was removed in December after complaints were filed alleging that he was not qualified for the position because he had not been admitted to a state bar, which officials said was required by the tribal code.

The accusations of Nez not being qualified came up after decisions that he had made disqualifying Chris Deschene as a candidate for the office of tribal president, and upheld the right of Russell Begaye to run.

Deswood Tome, a special adviser to Navajo Nation President Ben Shelly, said late Friday afternoon that the tribe’s legislative counsel and attorneys within the Navajo Department of Justice were working on Friday to make that happen.

“It was supposed to have occurred this morning,” Tome said, adding that it was still being worked on at 3 p.m.   Tome added that Nez’s reinstatement may occur next week.

In other matters dealing with Shelly, the tribal president still has not decided on whether to sign or veto legislation approved last week by the Navajo Nation Council that calls for the election process to start over again and to have the presidential primary election held in June and the general in August.

Tome said Shelly, who is expected to arrive back to the reservation late Friday afternoon, has until Saturday to make a decision.

Also, tomorrow at the Navajo Department of Transportation complex in Tse Bonito, N.M., the Navajo Nation Supreme Court is holding oral arguments to determine who legally holds the presidency on Jan. 13, which is Tuesday. The oral arguments are scheduled for 10 a.m.

About The Author

Bill Donovan

Bill Donovan wrote about Navajo Nation government and its people since 1971. He joined Navajo Times in 1976, and retired from full-time reporting in 2018 to move to Torrance, Calif., to be near his kids. He continued to write for the Times until his passing in August 2022.

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