Teleforum

Tribal jurisdiction is again before the Supreme Court. Following November 2018 arguments, Chief Justice John Roberts first requested additional briefing and then announced new arguments would occur in Sharp v. Murphy. Instead, the Court granted certiorari in McGirt v. Oklahoma, and Justice Gorsuch, who had recused himself from the earlier case, will participate. Jimcy McGirt sought post-conviction relief of his rape, molestation, and sodomy convictions, citing Murphy, and arguing his crimes occurred in Indian Country and thus were subject to the Indian Major Crimes Act. If that law applies, Mr. McGirt’s crimes should have been prosecuted in federal court, rather than state court. The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals rejected his request for relief. Because tribal jurisdiction related to criminal, civil, and regulatory matters generally flow together under Alaska v. Native Village of Venetie Tribal Government 522 U.S. 520 (1998), some legal analysts view this case as representative of a much larger matter th