Casino employee cited for Tribal ordinance violation

By Danielle Harrison

Smoke Signals editor

A Spirit Mountain Casino employee has been cited by Grand Ronde Tribal Police for violating a Tribal ordinance after using his work equipment for personal use.

The employee, Marketing Manager Chris Cherry, was cited under the Tribal Public Safety Ordinance for violating the campaign provision by using a casino graphics printer to print out sample proofs for his wife, Tribal Council Secretary Michael Cherry’s, reelection signs. The signs themselves were printed by outside companies, not at the casino.

The citation is a civil matter, not criminal in nature.

Cherry is running for a second term on Tribal Council and told Tribal Police and Smoke Signals she was unaware her husband had used work equipment to print out anything related to her campaign. She was not cited in the matter.

The potential violation was brought to the attention of the police after numerous people had commented on the matter on a social media page that is run anonymously. The site includes posts which criticize and mock certain Tribal Council members, including Cherry.

She told Smoke Signals that she has recently filed a police report because due to the actions of this individual, she no longer feels safe in the community.

“I have no idea what this person is capable of and I want it to come to light and on the record that I no longer feel safe or protected in our community due the harassing and bullying behavior that is only escalating with zero accountability,” she said.

According to the police report, an employee requested that the matter be investigated but asked to remain anonymous due to concerns for their safety and job security.

“Due to that reason, and this only being an ordinance violation and not a criminal matter, the complainant was not recorded, nor will they be mentioned,” the report said.

The report didn’t specify if it was a casino or Tribal employee, but it was later stated at the Wednesday, Aug. 21, Tribal Council meeting that a Tribal Council member had been the one to initially contact police.

Non-criminal campaign ordinance violations used to be investigated by the Tribe’s general manager. However, that was amended in recent years so that the general manager wouldn’t be in a position of potentially having to issue a citation to one of their supervisors, as the general manager is a direct report to Tribal Council.   

According to the police report and Smoke Signals interviews, Chris Cherry said he was using his computer to help troubleshoot a print quality issue that had come up with the signs.

He said in an Aug. 15 interview with Tribal Police that he had not printed the actual signs at the casino. Additionally, Michael Cherry provided Smoke Signals with invoices from the printing companies, Graphic Print Solutions of Lake Oswego, for a 6x12-foot billboard cover, three 60x30-inch signs and two 84x42-inch signs, and 1 Day Signs of Salem for 20, 14x16 inch brochures.

The police report included information that was not part of the ordinance violation. It stated that Cherry had a Tribal enrollment file on his work computer. The report also stated that the investigating officer was later made aware that the casino marketing department is authorized to have the information.

At the Aug. 21 Tribal Council meeting, the matter was made public after several Tribal members spoke on the issue. One accused Cherry of having her signs made by the casino, to which she replied that hadn’t happened and that they needed to “be careful about spreading false information moving forward.” Another Tribal member stated that if a council member had done something wrong then the council had an obligation to investigate and take appropriate action.

“This is an active investigation involving an employee at Spirit Mountain Casino and I was not cited for any violation,” Cherry said. “I reminded the membership that we have an ethics ordinance that every Tribal member and council member has access to and should follow…Thank God we are a country with due process and there is a court hearing (on this matter) come November where the citation will be heard and responded to.”

Chris Cherry will be appealing the citation in Tribal Court on Nov. 20 and has sought legal representation as the Cherrys believe it was a political tactic to undermine her campaign. They also stated that the only violation that occurred concerned the Tribe's policy regarding personal use of company equipment.

“All of that will come to light in Tribal Court,” Michael Cherry said.

Chris Cherry told Smoke Signals he “fully acknowledged” that he used a company computer to work on the sign.

"I have fully acknowledged in all investigation interviews that I used the company computer to work on a design for a personal campaign sign, including printing a few sample pieces for design and quality review purposes,” he said. “I did this on my own accord, without direction or approval. The final production of the posted signs and brochures was outsourced to external companies, and I have receipts to confirm this. As this is an ongoing employee relations matter and there is a citation for which I have sought legal representation, I have been asked not to discuss it further at this time. Having served the casino and Tribe for 28 years, over half my life, I am dismayed by the unfortunate series of events that have escalated into what feels like an unjust pursuit. I remain hopeful that fairness and reason will ultimately prevail."

When contacted by Smoke Signals, Tribal Communications Director Sara Thompson issued the following statement via email.

“Campaigning violations are investigated by the Tribal Police and citations are issued under the Public Safety Ordinance,” she said. “Mr. Cherry has been cited under this ordinance. Spirit Mountain and the Gaming Commission are also looking into Mr. Cherry’s actions. If the Tribe finds additional violations of Tribal law occurred, the Tribal Council will discuss what actions it may take to address the violations.”