Spota v. Jackson (NY Ct. App.) — “Intruders” under NY Indian Law

In Spota v. Jackson, the New York Court of Appeals (Kaye, C.J.) held that state courts have no business deciding who is an “intruder” as contemplated by the New York Indian Law. This case involves the tribal power to exclude, arising ot of a dispute on an individual allotment of a member of the Unkechaug Indian Nation (or Poospatuck).

One thought on “Spota v. Jackson (NY Ct. App.) — “Intruders” under NY Indian Law

  1. Bethany April 28, 2008 / 2:58 pm

    Right decision by the Court of Appeals, but wow, what is the Poospatuck Indian Nation thinking, ordering the non-tribal mother and guardian of tribal children evicted from the allotment after she had her husband removed from the home because of domestic violence? Perhaps the result of a system that (by state law) has the tribal council to make the decision then has the state court carry out the dirty work, rather than creating more meaningful tribal accountability with a tribal court system.

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