California and San Pasqual Tribe sue Poway and housing developer over handling of tribal remains

Hinzugefügt: 2026-05-05

[00:00:00]A legal battle is brewing in Poway. The California Attorney General and a local tribe are suing the city of Poway and developer Shea Homes. They say human remains and Native American artifacts were found at a construction site. It's our top story on the four. I'm Anna Laurel.

[00:00:17]>> I'm Carlo Chichetto, News 8. Kelly Hassadal has a closer look at both lawsuits and what the tribe says needs to happen moving forward.

[00:00:24]And this legal battle has been brewing for a while. So, here is the site here behind me. Now, the San Pasqual Mission Band of Indians says after the remains and artifacts were found here, the city and developer should have at least paused the project, but it says they refused. It's a 400-acre site off of Old Coach Road approved to be transformed into 40 new luxury homes. However, Hidden Valley Ranch is also likely the site of an ancient burial ground, according to a lawsuit just filed by the California Attorney General's office.

[00:00:55]Let's all kind of slow it down and talk about what needs to be done. Johnny Bear Contreras is the chair of the San Pasqual Tribe's Cultural Committee. The tribe has also filed its own lawsuit against the developer, Shea Homes, and the city of Poway. According to the suit, ancestral remains were found at the site back in October. In March, a jawbone with seven human teeth were found. Days later, the ribs of a teenager or small adult were uncovered.

[00:01:20]All three were found in different areas of the project site, each several hundred feet apart. Contreras says by law, the city was supposed to consult with them even before approving the project more than 20 years ago. That's why you have these federal state laws out that say, you will consult. You will go through this process prior.

[00:01:42]But, people have circumvented this process.

[00:01:44]>> He says they're not against development or trying to stop the project altogether. It's a pause. It's not a stop. It's a pause in order to pay respect to where respect is due cuz we're still here. Meanwhile, the city of Poway released a statement saying it was blindsided by the news of a pending lawsuit and an alleged California Environmental Quality Act violation.

[00:02:06]That it's been in consistent communication with the Attorney General's office over the past few months and is fully cooperating with all requests. And the statement goes on to say that the city of Poway takes this issue seriously, that it's confident it's complied with all laws, and that it's open to working with all parties involved. Kelly Hassadal, News 8.

[00:02:26]Thanks, Kelly. And Shea Homes tells CBS 8 in a statement that it's fully complied with all state and federal laws governing the protection of ancestral artifacts and human remains, and it's open to having constructive conversations. So, we'll see what happens.