Tribal Court of the

Sac & Fox Tribe of the Mississippi in Iowa
 
349 Meskwaki Road, Tama, IA 52339-9629         (641) 484-4678       Fax (641) 484 2221
 

Chief Justice of the Appellate Court
  Henry M. Buffalo, Jr., an enrolled member of the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, was sworn-in as the Chief Justice of the Appellate Court on June 8, 2005. Judge Buffalo received his Bachelors Degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1978. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 1981. While in law school he received the Joseph Davies Award as the outstanding member of the second year class. He is licensed to practice law in the states of Wisconsin and Minnesota and has been admitted to federal district courts in Wisconsin, Michigan, North Dakota and Minnesota, the 6th, 7th and 8th federal circuits and the federal courts in the District of Columbia. He also has been admitted to practice law before many tribal courts. Judge Buffalo served as general counsel for the Red Cliff Band, and as the first Executive Director of the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission. From 1984 to 1991, he served as Special Projects Attorney for the Fond Du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. While at Fond Du Lac he assisted in founding the National Indian Gaming Association and led the legal team responsible for drafting and implementing the strategy for adoption of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act; and in 1988 was appointed as a Judge for the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community, a position he continues to hold. Since October 1991, he has been engaged in the private practice of law with Jacobson, Buffalo, Schoessler & Magnuson, Ltd. in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Chief Judge of the Trial Court
Elbridge Coochise, an enrolled member of the Hopi Tribe, was sworn-in as Chief Judge of the Trial Court on April 27, 2005. Judge Coochise has been on the bench for 29 years. He was an Associate Judge in the Hopi Tribal Court from 1976-1981. From 1981-1997, he served as the Administrator/Chief Judge of the Northwest Intertribal Court System in western Washington state. Prior to retirement, he served as the Chief Justice of the Northwest Regional Tribal Supreme Court from 1988-1997. In Senior Judge status, he sits on the Cabazon Court of Appeals, the Intertribal Court of California, and the San Carlos Tribal Court. In addition to his duties as Chief Judge of the Sac & Fox Tribal Court, he is the owner and operator of Coochise Consulting, which provides services to tribes and tribal organizations, including lobbying, training, pro-tem judge, judicial services, administrative services and court evaluations. He has had the honor of serving on several national committees and panels, and was the key proponent in the passage of the Indian Tribal Justice Act, PL 103-176, on December 3, 1993.
   
 
Associate Judge of the Trial Court
Joseph Plumer, an enrolled member of the Leech Lake (White Oak Point/Mississippi) Band of Chippewa Indians, was sworn-in as an Associate Judge of the Trial Court on August 31, 2005. Judge Plumer received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio in 1980. He graduated from the Case Western Reserve University School of Law in 1983. Judge Plumer began his legal career as a staff attorney for the Anishinabe Legal Services in Cass Lake, Minnesota. He has been in –house counsel for various tribes in Minnesota, and also was an Assistant Attorney General for the state of Minnesota. Since November 1, 2002, Judge Plumer has been engaged in the practice of law as a sole practitioner in Plumer Law Office. Judge Plumer is licensed to practice law in all state and federal courts in Minnesota, as well as the tribal courts of Prairie Island, Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux, Upper Sioux, Mille Lacs, Leech Lake, White Earth, and Bois Forte tribes. He currently sits as a Special Magistrate for the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe’s Tribal Court; Appellate Judge for the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe’s Court of Appeals; and Administrative Law Judge for the Gaming Division of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.
   
 
Associate Judge of the Trial Court
Judge Kimberly M. Vele, an enrolled member of the Stockbridge-Munsee Tribe, was sworn-in as an Associate Judge of the Trial Court on June 8, 2005. Judge Vele received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science/English from Loyola University of Chicago in 1980. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 1984. She began her legal career as an attorney for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Bureau of Legal Services in Madison, Wisconsin. From there, she became a Tribal Attorney for the Stockbridge-Munsee Tribe in Bowler, Wisconsin, and also engaged in private practice until the recent sale of that practice last year. She is a member of the Federal Bar Association; State Bar of Wisconsin; Wisconsin Indian League of Lawyers; Wisconsin Tribal Court Judges Association; board member for the National Tribal Court Judges Association; and chairperson of the Management and Oversight Committee for the National Tribal Justice Resource Center. Currently, Judge Vele sits on the Court of Appeals for the Mohegan Nation; pro-tem Appellate and Supreme Court Judge for the Wisconsin Tribes; pro-tem Trial Judge for the Menominee Indian Nation, Ho Chunk, Oneida, and Lac Du Flambeau tribal courts; and is an Associate Judge for the Stockbridge-Munsee community.
   
  Theresa Essmann Mahoney, an enrolled member of the Sac & Fox Tribe of the Mississippi in Iowa, was appointed Clerk of the Tribal Court on April 12, 2005. Mrs. Essmann Mahoney attended the University of Iowa on an “Opportunities at Iowa” full-ride scholarship, and was a State of Iowa Scholar. She graduated from the American Institute of Commerce, now known as Hamilton College, in Cedar Falls with a diploma as a paralegal. She worked as a paralegal for two years for Gallagher, Langlas & Gallagher, P.C., in Waterloo. In 1993, she was hired as a Judicial Court Clerk for Black Hawk County. In her eleven years of experience at the district court level, Mrs. Essmann Mahoney worked in the areas of divorce, child support, paternity, small claims, law and equity, probate, domestic abuse, and criminal. As part of a large office, she worked with attorneys, judges, court reporters, law enforcement and state agencies and the general public one-on-one on a daily basis.