Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians

North Dakota District Court Orders Eviction of Tribal Member from Indian Housing Authority Located on Fee Lands

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the opinion in Trenton Indian Housing Authority v. Poitra (N.D. Dist. Ct.):

District Court Decision

North Dakota SCT Decides Against State Court Jurisdiction over Reservation Accident

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the opinion in Jay v. Lavallie.

Briefs:

Appellant Brief

Appellee Brief

Supplemental Appellant Brief

Supplemental Appellee Brief

Federal Court Dismisses Challenge to Tribal TERO Order

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here are the materials in Hanson v. Parisien (D.N.D.):

1 Complaint

1-1 Tribal Court Order

1-2 Tribal Appellate Court Order

16-1 Motion to Dismiss

18 Response

19 Reply

20 DCT Order

North Dakota SCT Remands Tort Claim to Assess whether Accident Occurred in Indian Country + Whether Defendant was Tribal Member

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here are the materials in Lavallie v. Jay:

2020ND147 Opinion

Appellant Brief

Appellee Brief

North Dakota SCT Affirms State Court Jurisdiction over Reservation Housing Eviction Matter

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the opinion in Gustafson v. Poitra: Opinion

Excerpt:

Linus and Raymond Poitra appeal the district court judgment of eviction. The Poitras argue the district court erred by exercising jurisdiction over this matter, and by sending a North Dakota law enforcement officer onto the reservation to evict tribal members from property within the Turtle Mountain Reservation. We affirm.

Briefs:

Appellant Brief

Appellee Brief

Leasehold Sues BIA Over Trespass Finding @ Turtle Mountain

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the complaint in Grenier v. Dept. of Interior (D.N.D.):

complaint

IBIA decision here.

North Dakota SCT Issues Tribal Court Jurisdiction Decision

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the opinion in Gustafson v. Poitra.

Briefs:

appellant brief

appellee brief

North Dakota SCT Asserts Concurrent Jurisdiction over Nonmember Indian Child Support Orders

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the opinion in State v. Peltier.

Briefs:

peltier brief

state brief

North Dakota State Court Declines Jurisdiction over Bank’s Foreclosure of Trust Land at Turtle Mountain

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the opinion in Turtle Mountain State Bank v. Delorme:

Rolette County District Court Order

New Book: “Claiming Turtle Mountain’s Constitution: The History, Legacy, and Future of a Tribal Nation’s Founding Documents” by Keith Richotte

Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Claiming Turtle Mountain’s Constitution: The History, Legacy, and Future of a Tribal Nation’s Founding Documents

By Keith Richotte Jr.

TM Book

In an auditorium in Belcourt, North Dakota, on a chilly October day in 1932, Robert Bruce and his fellow tribal citizens held the political fate of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians in their hands. Bruce, and the others, had been asked to adopt a tribal constitution, but he was unhappy with the document, as it limited tribal governmental authority. However, white authorities told the tribal nation that the proposed constitution was a necessary step in bringing a lawsuit against the federal government over a long-standing land dispute. Bruce’s choice, and the choice of his fellow citizens, has shaped tribal governance on the reservation ever since that fateful day.

In this book, Keith Richotte Jr. offers a critical examination of one tribal nation’s decision to adopt a constitution. By asking why the citizens of Turtle Mountain voted to adopt the document despite perceived flaws, he confronts assumptions about how tribal constitutions came to be, reexamines the status of tribal governments in the present, and offers a fresh set of questions as we look to the future of governance in Native America and beyond.

For more information and to read an excerpt, visit the book page.