Joe Byrd (Cherokee Nation Principal Chief) facts for kids

Joe Byrd (born in 1954) is a leader who served as the Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation from 1995 to 1999. He can speak both the Cherokee and English languages. After his time as Principal Chief, he later served on the Cherokee Nation Tribal Council.

Early Life and Public Service

Joe Byrd grew up in Nicut, Oklahoma, and Belfonte, Oklahoma. Before becoming Principal Chief, he was a member of the Cherokee Nation Tribal Council. He served on the council from 1987 to 1995, helping to make decisions for the Cherokee people.

Serving as Principal Chief

In 1995, Joe Byrd was elected as the Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation. He took over from Wilma Mankiller, who was a very respected leader. His four years as Chief were a time of many challenges and disagreements within the Cherokee Nation government. These issues even led to the United States government getting involved to help resolve the situation.

Disagreements Over Funds

One of the main disagreements involved a business called Cherokee Nation Industries (CNI). In 1996, a law firm was hired to help CNI with a problem involving another company. This law firm was connected to Byrd's family.

Later, CNI settled the problem with the other company, and a large amount of money was involved. There were questions about how much money the law firm received from this settlement. Some people wondered if the law firm, and possibly Joe Byrd, knew about the settlement before a special agreement was signed about how the money would be shared.

Tribal Council Concerns

Many members of the Tribal Council were worried about Byrd's actions and how he handled money matters. They asked him many times to share financial documents and information, but he did not always do so.

The Tribal Council also looked into concerns about other people in Byrd's administration. These concerns included questions about how tribal money was being used and if some conversations were being listened to without permission.

The disagreements grew when Byrd continued to not share the documents the Tribal Council asked for. In 1996, the Tribal Council asked the Cherokee Nation Justice Appeals Tribunal (JAT), which is like a court, to help them get the documents. The JAT ruled that Byrd had to share the documents with the Tribal Council and any Cherokee Nation citizen. However, Byrd still refused.

Because Byrd would not cooperate, the Tribal Prosecutor asked for permission to look for the documents at Byrd's office. When the documents were found, Byrd reacted by firing some officials, including the Director of the Cherokee Nation Marshal Service. A Cherokee Nation Justice quickly ordered them to be hired back. Byrd then fired more people, including the entire Marshal Service and the Tribal Prosecutor. He asked the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), a U.S. government agency, to take over law enforcement for the Cherokee Nation.

Investigations and Resolution

Byrd announced that he had asked the FBI to investigate members of the Tribal Council and Justices, claiming they were trying to "overthrow his administration." He also said he had recorded conversations of Cherokee Nation employees and officials.

The Cherokee Nation Justice Court found that Byrd was not following their orders. The FBI investigated Byrd's claims and reviewed the recordings he had made. After their investigation, the FBI concluded that Byrd's claims were not true and closed their case.

The disagreements continued, and in April 1997, Byrd tried to remove the Cherokee Nation Court Justices from their positions. He also tried to get the Tribal Council to give law enforcement control to the BIA. The BIA then took over law enforcement duties within the Cherokee Nation.

Byrd also tried to shut off power to the Cherokee Nation Justice Complex and closed the Courthouse. In response, the Cherokee Nation Justices issued orders for his actions to stop.

In August 1997, Joe Byrd met with U.S. government officials in Washington, D.C.. After discussions, he signed an agreement to give control of law enforcement to the Bureau of Indian Affairs. By late September, the Cherokee Nation Courts were reopened, and the Cherokee Nation Marshal Service was back in action.

After Byrd's Term

After these events, the BIA closely watched the Cherokee Nation government for the rest of Byrd's term. There were still questions about how funds were used.

In 1999, Joe Byrd ran for re-election but lost to Chad "Corntassel" Smith. It took more than four years for the Cherokee Nation government to fully recover and for the BIA to no longer be involved in its daily affairs.

Cherokee Tribal Council Service

After his time as Principal Chief, Joe Byrd continued to serve the Cherokee Nation. On January 23, 2012, he was sworn in as a Tribal Councilor for district 1. He won a full term for the new district 2 in 2013 and was sworn in on August 14, 2013. In August 2015, he was chosen to be the Speaker of the Tribal Council. He was re-elected as Speaker in 2017. His term on the council ended in 2021 due to term limits.