CALIFORNIA | LOCAL
August 20, 2007 | David Reyes, Times Staff Writer
Where others see sycamores and sage lining the small valley harboring San Mateo Creek, Rebecca Robles sees her ancestors. Robles is a member of the Juaneño Band of Mission Indians. The valley, where her ancestors lived 4,000 years ago in an ancient Acjachemen Nation village called Panhe, is threatened by a proposed six-lane toll road next to the site that could unearth human remains and damage a sacred spot that Juaneños have visited for generations.
CALIFORNIA | LOCAL
August 16, 2006 | Roy Rivenburg, Times Staff Writer
The skull of a Native American has been unearthed by construction workers at St. Margaret's Episcopal School in San Juan Capistrano, halting a chapel expansion project as archeologists sift the dirt for artifacts. The partial skull was discovered Friday afternoon and taken to the coroner's office for analysis, officials said Tuesday. A forensic anthropologist confirmed the remains were Native American and not recently buried, said Orange County coroner spokesman Jim Amormino.
CALIFORNIA | LOCAL
October 10, 2005 | Dave McKibben, Times Staff Writer
Splintered for more than a decade, members of the Juaneno Band of Mission Indians have bickered over elections, casino proposals and plans to build athletic fields on their land. But the estimated 4,000 members of the Acjacheman Nation scattered throughout Orange County and other parts of the country may have a compelling reason to become one again: the promise of federal recognition.
CALIFORNIA | LOCAL
November 26, 2004 | Dave McKibben, Times Staff Writer
When they began mapping plans six years ago for another Roman Catholic high school in Orange County, Marc Spizziri and Tim Busch figured their rivals would eventually be Mater Dei, Santa Margarita and Servite -- the area's largest parochial schools. The co-founders of Junipero Serra High School discovered soon enough that their biggest rival was in their own backyard -- the Juaneno Band of Mission Indians.
CALIFORNIA | LOCAL
November 4, 2004 | Dave McKibben, Times Staff Writer
A group attempting to block a $75-million athletic and arts complex at Junipero Serra High School failed to gather enough signatures to put the issue on the ballot, clearing the way for construction to begin as early as next week. The Orange County registrar of voters' announcement Wednesday that two petitions failed to meet the threshold of 1,752 signatures ends a prolonged feud over a vacant 29-acre plot on the north side of town.
CALIFORNIA | LOCAL
September 2, 2004 | Dave McKibben, Times Staff Writer
The San Juan Capistrano City Council has approved a Roman Catholic high school's plans for building athletic fields and a performing arts center on land held sacred by members of the Juaneno Band of Mission Indians. The council voted 4 to 1 late Tuesday to approve the $75-million project at Junipero Serra High School, despite passionate objections by Native Americans, environmentalists and neighbors.