» Cemetery: Judge dismisses city, others in suit over plaza project.
Judge gives plaintiffs a month to clarify case on grave sites
A federal judge has dismissed San Antonio and two state agencies as defendants in a lawsuit seeking to slow down the $450 million, four-year overhaul of Alamo Plaza in efforts to protect the area as a historic cemetery.
But Chief U.S. District Judge Orlando L. Garcia on Monday also left open the door for the Tap Pilam Coahuiltecan Nation to amend its lawsuit to better argue its case against the Alamo Trust, which is overseeing the overhaul, and its leader, Alamo CEO Douglass W. McDonald.
“We’re pretty excited about it,” said Ramón Vásquez, Tap Pilam executive officer. “The judge could have said, ‘You know what? This has no merit to it whatsoever.’ We’ve got 30 days to clean it all up, to respond to the judge’s order.”
McDonald and the Alamo Trust had no comment Monday. The other former defendants were pleased with the judge’s decision.
The tribal group claims the Alamo is the site of at least four known cemeteries that merit legal protection, and that descendants of people buried there should be consulted on the handling of human remains found at the site. It also seeks to continue a religious ceremony it has conducted at the Alamo for more than 20 years, according to the lawsuit.
In his order, Garcia dismissed the Texas Historical Commission, the Texas General Land Office and Land Commissioner George P. Bush from Tap Pilam’s lawsuit, saying they had sovereign immunity. He also dismissed San Antonio, saying the city had no legal authority over the group’s stated concerns.
Garcia’s order also dismissed the Alamo Trust and McDonald from the suit, but went on to suggest Tap Pilam may have something to take to court after presenting “factual allegations” that the trust drafted a human remains protocol that excludes Tap Pilam.
“Considering the link between these facts and plaintiff ’s alleged injuries, it appears to the Court that a potentially favorable judgment for Plaintiffs against ATI could redress at least some of their injuries, namely, being left out of the Archaeological Committee and the human remains protocol,” the judge wrote.
The court order comes just days after the city’s Historic and Design Review Commission approved a new placement of the Alamo Cenotaph, allowing work to begin on the first phase of what has been touted as a four-year, $450 million public-private makeover of Alamo Plaza.
Tap Pilam, representing descendants of people who lived at the Mission San Antonio de Valero, is worried that a cemetery containing about 50 burials of non-baptized individuals is in the area where construction will occur in the initial stage of construction.
Garcia’s order cited a previous court ruling that “lumping defendants together is insufficient to state a claim against any of them,” noting Tap Pilam’s lawsuit made arguments against the defen
dants in general, not any of them individually. The order noted that Tap Pilam could amend its complaint “specifically alleging the actions taken by ATI, McDonald, or any other remaining defendant that give rise to the relevant cause of action.”
Vásquez said the group will study Garcia’s order and file a response. He said the group was encouraged by portions of the 17-page order that suggested its claims against the trust may have merit.
“This is not over by a long shot,” Vásquez said. “We always knew this would be a long process.”
Along with wanting to be consulted on handling of human remains, Tap Pilam also seeks a comprehensive archival and archaeological study to delineate cemetery boundaries, and access to the Alamo church for its annual religious ceremony in the fall.
Vásquez said his group is prepared to re-file in state court if it doesn’t get relief in a federal courtroom. A similar case filed by the Alamo Defenders Descendants Association is pending in a state court in Travis County.
Mission burial records documented about 1,000 burials of indigenous people, Spaniards and others, and Tap Pilam estimates there were another 300 burials.
For their part, officials
“This is not over by a long shot. We always knew this would be a long process.”
Ramón Vásquez,
Tap Pilam executive officer
with the Land Office said the renovation work at the plaza will continue as planned.
“We will continue moving forward with the plan to restore and preserve the Alamo through careful archaeological assessment, and will continue to work under the previously established human remains protocols as written by the Alamo Mission Archaeology Advisory Committee,” said agency spokeswoman Karina Erickson.
Deputy City Attorney Ed Guzman said the city was pleased that it is no longer a defendant, and will work with Tap Pilam once all legal actions involving cemetery claims have been resolved.
“The ruling noted that the plaintiffs cannot trace their injuries to the City,” Guzman said. “As we have said in the past, we look forward to working with Tap Pilam to participate in the archaeological process of the plaza area south of the church, which remains within the city’s purview, when all suits regarding the Alamo have been addressed.”