Research

Any posts for an open Indian law or leadership job received prior to 12pm EST on Friday will appear in that week’s announcement, when the following information is sent to indigenous@law.msu.edu:

In the email body, a typed brief description of the position which includes
- position title,
- location (city, state),
- main duties,
- closing date,
- and any other pertinent details such as links to application;
An attached PDF job announcement.

University of Nevada

Lecturer II/Teaching Assistant Professor, Judicial Studies, Reno, NV. The manager of this degree program works in coordination with a LMS specialist as required, and with limited administrative support (approximately .10 FTE of an Administrative Assistant IV). The position also involves graduate level teaching in an area of expertise and extensive student advising duties. Thus, the position requires substantial content and technical expertise, as well as an ability to work independently in a fast-paced virtual academic environment. The application is open until filled. Apply here.

Oglala Sioux Tribe

Junior Associate In-House Counsel, OST Legal Department, Pine Ridge, SD. Counsel will work for the Oglala Sioux Tribe Council, the Executive Committee and with the Health and Human Services and Education Standing Committees. Counsel must attend weekly meetings with Committees and attend Tribal Council meetings as assigned. This position is open until filled. Please see the job announcement for more information.

The Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi, Waséyabek Development Company, L.L.C.

Independent Director for the Board of Directors of Waséyabek Development Company, L.L.C., Grand Rapids, MI. The Board of Directors is responsible for working with the Company’s Chief Executive Officer, the NHBP Tribal Council and other management staff to develop investment strategies and development plans for the Company to further the mission and purposes of the Company. In concert with the Company’s Chief Executive Officer, the Board of Directors is responsible for identifying investment criteria to drive the Company business acquisition and investment activities, authorizing investments/business acquisitions and monitoring the performance of the Company. Please see the job description for more information.

New Mexico Legal Aid

Staff Attorney, Gallup, NM. The staff attorney will handle cases and matters involving Federal Indian law and Indian tribal law issues, including representation of low income individuals in tribal court. In addition, the staff attorney may be required to handle general poverty law work in non-Tribal forums and to conduct outreach in Indian and non-Indian communities. For more information please see the position description.

See posts from April 24, 2020.

Oneida Employee Civil Rights Suit Dismissed by Federal Court

May 1, 2020May 1, 2020Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here are the materials in Holtz v. Oneida Airport Hotel Corp. (E.D. Wis.):

1 Notice of Removal

1-3 Amended Complaint

8 Airport Hotel Motion to Dismiss

12 Tribe Motion to Dismiss

25 DCT Order

Tribes Sue for CARES Act Funds

May 1, 2020May 4, 2020Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the complaint in Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians v. Mnuchin (D.D.C.):

1 Complaint

4 Motion for TRO

Eastern Band Cherokee Bid to Enjoin Catawba Trust Land Acquisition Fails

May 1, 2020Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the order in Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians v. Dept. of the Interior (D.D.C.):

22 DCT Order

Briefs here.

Fort Sill Apache Loses Akela Flats Suit against NIGC

May 1, 2020Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the order in Fort Sill Apache Tribe v. National Indian Gaming Commission (D.D.C.):

137 DCT Order

Materials here.

NAICJA Webinar at 3pm Today (Thursday)

April 30, 2020ilpc

Criminal Dockets & Due Process Issues

Ninth Circuit Again Rejects Lezmond Mitchell Challenges to Death Penalty, but Two Judges Question the Punishment

April 30, 2020Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the opinion in Mitchell v. United States.

Judge Christen noted that this is the first intra-tribal carjacking crime to result in death:

I join the majority’s considered opinion in full, but write separately because the lengthy history of this case may make it easy to lose track of the fact that Mitchell did not receive the death penalty for his murder convictions. Mitchell was sentenced to death because, in the course of committing their atrocious crimes, he and his accomplice also committed a carjacking. In my view, it is worth pausing to consider why Mitchell faces the prospect of being the first person to be executed by the federal government for an intra-Indian crime, committed in Indian country, by virtue of a conviction for carjacking resulting in death.

Concurring Judge Hurwitz called on the AG to reconsider this matter:

I write separately to stress a point aptly made earlier in the long history of this case by Judge Reinhardt. See Mitchell v. United States, 790 F.3d 881, 894–97 (9th Cir. 2015) (Reinhardt, J., dissenting in part). The heinous crimes that gave rise to this case occurred entirely within the territory of the sovereign Navajo Nation. The defendant is a Navajo, as were the victims. The Navajo Nation has, from the outset of this case, opposed imposition of the death penalty on the defendant, as have members of the victims’ family