The Law of American Indians Posts
North Dakota Tribal Leaders Highlight ‘Unfair’ Voter ID Law in Congressional Hearing
North Dakota tribal leaders urged members of Congress Tuesday to protect Native American voting rights, highlighting a state voter identification law they said creates unequal access to the ballot box.
Indian Country Criminal Jurisdiction
The following entry is excerpted from the Reporters Introductory Note on Chapter 5 – Indian Country Criminal Jurisdiction, and Black Letter and Comments of Section 100. Indian Country.
American Indian Law: When Two Sovereigns Collide
This episode of Reasonably Speaking passes the microphone to American Indian Law experts Matthew Fletcher and Wenona Singel for a serious look at tribal sovereignty, voting rights, violence against native women, and much more.
Appeals court hears Texas case challenging Indian Child Welfare Act; Judge says ‘They are not your children … they are the children of the tribes’
A total of 325 tribal nations, 57 Native organizations, 21 states, 31 child welfare organizations, 7 members of Congress, and dozens of scholars of federal Indian law and constitutional law supported the law.
Criminal Justice in Indian Country: A Theoretical and Empirical Agenda
Examinations of the Native American experience in the US criminal justice system are still relatively sparse, despite earlier calls for increased attention to Native American crime and justice issues. This is unfortunate, as Native Americans are unique among all groups in US society and face distinctive criminal justice jurisdictional complexities.
Tribes Come Together to Challenge The Indian Child Welfare Decision
A defending argument for the Indian Child Welfare Act was released last week with widespread support from 325 tribes, 57 organizations, 31 child welfare organizations and seven members of Congress.
Argument Analysis: Justices Grapple With Preclusion and “Occupation” in Crow Tribe Treaty Case
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court heard argument in its latest foray into Indian treaty interpretation, Herrera v. Wyoming. The case concerns the persistence of the Crow Tribe’s hunting right in the 1868 Second Treaty of Fort Laramie. In an occasionally meandering argument, the Supreme Court repeatedly circled the three issues at the core of the case: issue preclusion, the implications of the court’s holding in its 1999 decision in Minnesota v. Mille Lacs Band of Chippewa Indians, and the meaning of the treaty term “unoccupied.”
October 2018 Council Updates
During its meeting in New York City on October 18 and 19, the ALI Council reviewed drafts for seven Institute projects. Drafts or portions of drafts for six projects received Council approval, subject to the meeting discussion and to the usual prerogative to make nonsubstantive editorial improvements.
CU Boulder American Indian Law Clinic Wants North Dakota’s Reservation Voters to Be Heard
A group of about 20 law students and Boulder area residents are being led to North Dakota over the next several days by the University of Colorado American Indian Law Clinic to ensure the votes of tribal reservation members are counted in Tuesday’s election.
Texas Judge Rules Indian Child Welfare Act as Unconstitutional
The Indian Child Welfare Act was dealt a substantial blow on Friday, when a U.S. Federal Judge in the Northern District of Texas ruled the landmark legislation unconstitutional. According to the law, when a Native child is up for adoption, family members, other tribal members, and then other Native homes are to be prioritized for placement. Ample research shows that all children, Native and non-Native alike, have better outcomes when they are raised with family, extended family or in their community over state child welfare systems and foster homes. National child advocacy organizations have praised the act as a gold standard for child welfare. The act is often referred to by its acronym, ICWA.