Stanley Crooks, chairman of Minnesota tribe, dies

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – Stanley Crooks, the chairman of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community for the last two decades, died Saturday. He was 70.

A statement from the tribe said Crooks died from natural causes but did not go into more details.

“Chairman Crooks was a leader in every sense of the word,” tribal vice chairman Charlie Vig said in a statement. “I am honored to have worked with Stanley over the last 20 years. ... We join with his family, friends, and all those who were privileged to know Chairman Crooks in mourning his passing.”

Crooks, who became the tribe's chairman in 1992, was a national figure in Indian country, serving as the chairman of the Minnesota Indian Gaming Association for many years and the tribe's representative to the National Indian Gaming Association, as well as to the National Congress of American Indians.

He served in the Navy during the Cuban missile crisis. His late father, Norman, served as the first chairman of the Shakopee Sioux community, according to the Star Tribune.

According to constitutional procedures that govern the community, Vig will succeed Crooks. Secretary/Treasurer Keith B. Anderson will assume the office of vice chairman. A tribal election will be held to fill Anderson's office.

Crooks is survived by his wife, Cheryl, and two daughters, Cherie and Alisa. Funeral arrangements were pending.