Criminal – Page 94 – Turtle Talk

Report on First Nations Representation on Ontario Juries

February 26, 2013Kate Fort

Here is the full report (pdf), but if you’d like to listen to it in Ojibwe, Cree, Mohawk, or Oji-Cree, here is the link.

THUNDER BAY, ON, Feb. 26, 2013 /CNW/ – The Honourable Frank Iacobucci, former Supreme Court Justice and Independent Reviewer, today released his report on First Nations Representation on Ontario Juries. The report finds that the justice system and juries process are in a state of crisis for Ontario’s First Nations peoples, particularly those living in the North, and identifies 17 recommendations to improve the representation of First Nations individuals on juries and enhance their perception of the jury system.

“For Ontario’s First Nations peoples, particularly in the North, the justice system and juries process generally are in a crisis,” said the Hon. Frank Iacobucci. “As a result of our face-to-face meetings with leaders and community members from 32 First Nations from across Ontario, we developed 17 recommendations that will help ensure that the cultural values, laws, and ideologies of First Nations’ are better reflected in the Canadian justice system.”

The Attorney General of Ontario appointed the Hon. Frank Iacobucci in August 2011 to examine, report, and offer recommendations regarding the process for inclusion of First Nation peoples living in reserve communities on the provincial jury roll.

Key recommendations made by the Independent Reviewer include:

Establishing an Implementation Committee with First Nations membership, government officials and individuals (including a youth Aboriginal member) who would be responsible for the implementation of the report.
Establishing a First Nation Advisory Group to the Attorney General on matters relating to First Nations peoples and the justice system.
Providing cultural training for all government officials working in the justice system who have contact with First Nations peoples (e.g. police, court workers, Crown prosecutors, prison guards and other related agencies).
Determining promptly and urgently the feasibility and suitability of using existing government databases or other suitable sources (e.g. band residency information, Ministry of Transportation information, OHIP roles, and other records) to generate a database of First Nations individuals living on reserve for the purposes of compiling the jury roll.
Amending the questionnaire sent to prospective jurors so that it is more appropriate for First Nations communities.
Considering a procedure whereby First Nations people on reserve could volunteer for jury service as a means of supplementing other jury source lists.
Creating an Assistant Deputy Attorney General position responsible for Aboriginal issues, including the implementation of this report.

Certain readers might be interested to know the author of the report, Hon. Frank Iacobucci, also is a member of the board for Tim Horton’s.

United States v. Caballero — Obstruction of Shingle Springs Miwok Mail

February 25, 2013Matthew L.M. Fletcher1 Comment

Here are the lower court materials in the case, now on appeal in the Ninth Circuit. This criminal case is related to the tribe’s long-running dispute with Cesar Caballero, who apparently posed as an “imposter” tribal leader.

13 – Minutes – magistrate judge trial

55 – Order – district judge affirming conviction

2011-08-30 Transcript – trial before magistrate judge

2012-09-28 Transcript – hearing on appeal of magistrate judge’s conviction to district judge

Related trademark case here.

Two New Papers by Alex Skibine on IGRA and Indian Country Hot Pursuit

February 12, 2013Matthew L.M. Fletcher1 Comment

The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act at 25: Successes, Shortcomings, and Dilemmas
Alexander Tallchief Skibine
University of Utah – S.J. Quinney College of Law
Date Posted: January 14, 2013
Working Paper Series

Hot Pursuit into Indian Country: What Are the Limits?
Alexander Tallchief Skibine
University of Utah – S.J. Quinney College of Law
Date Posted: January 14, 2013
Working Paper Series

Federal Search Warrant in Seneca-Cayuga’s Skydancer Smoke Shop in Upstate New York

February 7, 2013Matthew L.M. Fletcher1 Comment

Here:

Skydancer Search Warrant

News coverage here.

NYTs Article on Oravec v. Cole

February 3, 2013February 3, 2013Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here.

An excerpt:

Two families from the Crow Indian Reservation in Montana can proceed with a lawsuit against an F.B.I. agent that accuses him of failing to properly investigate crimes against American Indians on and around the reservation, the United States Supreme Court has ruled.

Ninth Circuit materials here.

Bishop Colony’s Stolen Petroglyphs Recovered

February 3, 2013February 1, 2013Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here.

We posted about this a few months back.

Minnesota SCT Affirms State Jurisdiction to Civilly Confine Leech Lake Band Ojibwe Member

January 30, 2013Matthew L.M. Fletcher1 Comment

Here is today’s opinion in Beaulieu v. Minnesota Department of Human Services.

Mr. Beaulieu previously challenged his confinement in federal court, materials here.

Michigan Law Review Note on Uncounseled Tribal Court Convictions

January 30, 2013Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Christiana M. Martenson has published “Uncounseled Tribal Court Guilty Pleas in State and Federal Courts: Individual Rights Versus Tribal Self-Governance” (PDF) in the Michigan Law Review. Here is the abstract:

Indian tribes in the United States are separate sovereigns with inherent self-governing authority. As a result, the Bill of Rights does not directly bind the tribes, and criminal defendants in tribal courts do not enjoy the protection of the Sixth Amendment right to counsel. In United States v. Ant, a defendant—without the legal assistance that a state or federal court would have provided—pled guilty to criminal charges in tribal court. Subsequently, the defendant faced federal charges arising out of the same events that led to the tribal prosecution. The Ninth Circuit in Ant barred the federal prosecutor from using the defendant’s prior uncounseled tribal court guilty plea as evidence in the federal proceeding, explaining that doing so would violate the Sixth Amendment. This Note argues that Ant is no longer good law. First, Ant’s legal foundation is weak, especially in light of subsequent developments in Sixth Amendment jurisprudence. Second, Ant is poor policy because excluding tribal court guilty pleas from state and federal proceedings undermines tribal self-governance. Even though governments must protect the rights of individual criminal defendants, supporting tribal authority will ultimately lead to decreased violence on Indian land and increased consistency with federal legislation.

D.C. Circuit Affirms Conviction of Jack Abramoff Associate Kevin Ring

January 25, 2013Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the opinion.

An excerpt:

In 2004, a Department of Justice investigation into Jack Abramoff’s lobbying team unearthed evidence of corruption so extensive that it ultimately implicated more than twenty public officials, staffers, and lobbyists. Appellant Kevin Ring, once a prominent Washington lobbyist, was one of them. Exposing the dark underbelly of a profession that has long played an important role in American politics, this case probes the boundary between legal lobbying and criminal conduct. Ring was convicted of honest-services fraud, paying an illegal gratuity, and conspiracy relating to his provision of meals, tickets, and other gifts to public officials. On appeal, Ring argues that the district court’s instructions on the honest-services counts misstated the law, that the jury lacked sufficient evidence to find that an “official act” underlay the illegal-gratuity charge, and that the district court ran afoul of Federal Rule of Evidence 403 and the First Amendment when it admitted evidence of his lawful campaign contributions. Although each of these arguments is weighty, we ultimately affirm Ring’s conviction.