Geronimo’s Heirs Sue Secret Yale Society for Return of Skull

The descendants of Geronimo have sued the secret Yale society known as Skull and Bones for the return of a skull believed to have been stolen from the grave of the Apache warrior.

Rumors have long held that Prescott S. Bush, the grandfather of President George W. Bush, raided the grave with some classmates and took the skull, which is now kept in a glass case in the society's clubhouse, the New York Times reports.

Former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark, who represents the family members, told the Times he doesn’t have hard proof that the rumor is true, but he would like a court to get to the bottom of the matter. A Washington Post story on the suit describes the 81-year-old Clark as “long a lawyer for the sort of esoteric causes that generate news conferences, however sparsely attended.”

Geronimo's great-grandson, Harlyn Geronimo, said at the news conference that the warrior’s spirit would continue to wander until the remains are properly buried. The Post story says he “projected a sort of authenticity by wearing a Vietnam Veterans ball cap, Apache medicine beads, Ray-Ban tinted glasses, a bullfighter's belt buckle and black boots.”

How Appealing also noted stories on the suit in the Yale Daily News and the Hartford Courant, and linked to the complaint (PDF).

The Yale Daily News tried to locate representatives of the secret society for comment, but was unsuccessful. “Repeated knocks on the front door of the society’s tomb were not answered Tuesday evening,” the newspaper reports.