Native American Law Blog

Dismissal of federal domestic violence charge on the basis of previous DV charges is REVERSED by Circuit Court

The dismissal of a federal domestic violence charge against a 37-year-old enrolled member of the Northern Ute Tribe was reversed and sent back to the lower court by a three-judge panel of the U.S. 10^th Circuit Court of Appeals on July 26.

The justices ruled that neither the absence of counsel in two prior domestic violence convictions in Ute Tribal Court nor differences between tribal and U.S. law violated the rights of Adam Ray Shavanaux of Fort Duchesne, Uintah and Ouray Reservation, Utah.

 

See the full story HERE.

 

Pathways to Respecting American Indian Civil Rights Conference upcoming

The second annual Pathways to Respecting American Indian Civil Rights Conference will be held at the University of Colorado (UNC) in Greeley, Colorado August 10 and 11.

“The conference promotes the training, education, and sharing of information between American Indians on and off-reservation with various federal, state, and local agencies, community organizations, educators, health care providers, and more,” states the event announcement.

Keynote speakers include John Echohawk, president and CEO of the Native American Rights Fund; John Walsh, U.S. attorney, District of Colorado; Troy Eid, chair, U.S. Committee on Indian Law and Order, and a former District of Colorado U.S. attorney; and Karen Artichoker, of the Indigenous Women’s Justice Institute.

Breakout session topics include:

• Environmental Justice
• Nondiscrimination in Employment and Employment Opportunities through Tribal Employment Rights Offices
• Sexual Violence in the Lives of Native Women
• Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the American Indian Health Improvement Act
• Civil Rights and Justice on Tribal Land
• The Modern HIV Epidemic and its Challenges to Tribal Rights and Sovereignty
• Culturally Aware Approaches to Address Harassment and Bullying

Registration is required, to do so visit Unco.edu.

For more information contact Solomon Little Owl at Solomon.littleowl@unco.edu or Evelyn McGregor at evelyn.mcgregor@fns.usda.gov.

 

Why do these decisions seem to take forever to make?

Federal officials have ruled that a Tahlequah casino operated by the United Keetoowah Band Indian tribe is not on Indian land, referring the matter to state officials for possible action.

The casino has been operating for 20 years while the question of its legal status remained tied up in federal red tape, court cases and disputes between the UKB tribe and the Cherokee Nation.

Tracie Stevens, chairwoman of the National Indian Gaming Commission, sent the letter Thursday to UKB Chief George Wickliffe, Principal Chief of the Cherokees Chad Smith and Attorney General Scott Pruitt.

Stevens' letter reviews an 11-year history of legal disputes over whether the casino exists on Indian land and concludes: "The gaming site is not currently Indian land eligible for gaming" under federal law.

 

See the full story HERE.

 

twp

 

DOI Seeking Nominations for Commission on Indian Trust Administration and Reform

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Establishment of the Commission on Indian Trust Administration and Reform

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, Interior.
ACTION: Notice and request for nominations.

SUMMARY: The Department of the Interior is announcing the establishment of the Commission on Indian Trust Administration and Reform (Commission). The purpose of the Commission is to provide advice and recommendations to the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) regarding trust management. This includes a thorough evaluation of the existing management and administration of the trust administration system to support a reasoned and factually based set of options for potential management improvements. This further includes a review of the manner in which the Department audits the management of the trust administration system, including the possible need for audits of management of trust assets.

The Department of the Interior is seeking nominations for individuals to be considered as Commission members. Nominations should describe and document the proposed member's qualifications for membership to the Commission, and include a resume listing their name, title, address, telephone, e-mail, and fax number.

DATES: Written nominations must be received by August 8, 2011.

NOTE: SEE FEDERAL REGISTER NOTICE FOR SPECIFIC ADDRESSES TO SEND YOUR INFORMATION TO IN ORDER TO NOMINATE FOR THE COMMISSION. For the link, please click here.

-Carolyn

Our condolences to the family and friends of Professor and Dean David Getches

The field has lost one of its giants.

David Getches, a leading American Indian rights lawyer and former dean of the University of Colorado School of Law, has died from pancreatic cancer. He was 68, the Associated Press reports.

Getches worked on several groundbreaking Native court cases and was the founding director of the Native American Rights Fund.  Among American Indian rights cases litigated by Getches, the 1974 United States v. Washington case is cited by the National Congress of American Indians as the leading case on enforcement of tribal treaty rights. That case involved the fishing rights of Northwest tribes granted under treaties signed in the 1800s.

RIP

 

Havasupai Seeks General Counsel

 The Havasupai Tribe is looking for an individual or firm with significant experience and background in federal and tribal Indian law to serve as general counsel, excluding the Tribe’s pursuit of its water rights, and to represent the Tribal Council, any Tribal Council committees or boards, and any department of the Havasupai Tribal Government in any legal matters. Open until filled.

Contact Person: Bernadine Jones, Chairwoman, P.O. Box 10, Supai, Arizona 86435 (928) 448-2731

Download Havasupai General Counsel

-Carolyn

Free Webinar tonight on Crowe Dunlevy v. Stidham (The Thlopthlocco Disaster)

Don't forget the FREE Webinar tonight on the 10th Circuit decision in Crowe Dunlevy v. Stidham, an important case for all tribal courts and tribal court practitioners.

Thursday, July 7th at 5:30 pm PT / 7:30 pm CT / 8:30 pm ET

Professor Tim Pleasant will provide a short presentation on the implications of the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals case, "Crowe Dunlevy v. Stidham," as well as demonstrating the online classroom that will be used for the fully online Master of Jurisprudence in Indian Law (MJIL) offered by The University of Tulsa College of Law.

Monday, July 18th at 5:30 pm PT / 7:30 pm CT / 8:30 pm ET

You can also join MJIL Program Co-director and Professor Tim Pleasant for a webinar on the "Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010" on July 18, at the same time and location.

At the appointed time (watch your time zones!), simply go to webinar.indianlawmj.com and sign in.  If you get there too early, you'll get a polite message that effect, but don't be discouraged.  And if you have difficulty logging in, there is a technical support telephone number (1-949-597-8555, ext. 2) where our terrific tech support people will help you all they can.

New EPA rules for tribal environmental protection

From Indian Country Today:  WASHINGTON – A new and long-awaited set of rules released by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency aims to strengthen tribal regulation of clean air standards in Indian country, putting tribes on equal footing with states in regulating their own environments. The action, which tribes have been pushing for since the early 1990s, had been long delayed as the agency put many priorities ahead of regulations that would improve the health and economies of tribal citizens.

See the full story HERE.

 

 

A reader sends us......

......this on his recently published article on the Cobell case.  Enjoy.

I wanted to let you and your readers know that I’ve just published the first full-length article on the Cobell litigation, just in time for the final settlement:  “An Unbroken Chain of Injustice:  The Dawes Act, Native American Trusts, and Cobell v. Salazar, 46 Gonzaga Law Review 609 (2010/11).

 

I have eschewed the normal, strictly academic discussion in favor of a more moving and balanced piece that underscores the human rights at issue in the case while still rendering an academic analysis.

 

I am hopeful that this will be of particular interest to students interested in the field.

 

Many thanks for your time and attention, and best wishes.

 

Armen H. Merjian