Sounds crazy, right? Unfortunately, that appears to be occurring today as Oklahoma grapples with the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision that tribal reservations were not formally abolished when it comes to criminal jurisdiction (which opens the door for increased tribal authority in a wide range of areas).
To reach this point, many prominent state officials weighed in and suggested reestablishment of reservations would not be a big challenge in Oklahoma—even though the court reaching that decision would also involve vacating Jimcy McGirt’s prison sentence. McGirt was convicted of molesting, raping, and forcibly sodomizing a four-year-old girl.
Those filing a brief in McGirt’s case, in which McGirt’s attorneys argued he could not be tried in state court because he is Seminole and Creek reservation boundaries remain in place, included U.S. Rep. Tom Cole, former Gov. Brad Henry, former state Senate leader Glenn Coffee, former Oklahoma House Speaker Kris Steele, former Attorney General Mike Turpen, former state House Speaker T.W. Shannon, former U.S. Rep. Dan Boren, and others. All signed their name to a brief submitted by the Chickasaw Nation and the Choctaw Nation.
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by Muskogee Politico - July 28, 2020 at 11:15PM
OCPA column: One-sided negotiation?
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