Oliphant v. Suquamish Indian Tribe (1978)

E613634

Oliphant v. Suquamish Indian Tribe (1978) is a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision that held tribal courts lack criminal jurisdiction over non-Indians, significantly limiting Native American sovereignty and self-governance in criminal matters.

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Statements (50)

Predicate Object
instanceOf U.S. Supreme Court case
federal Indian law case
landmark decision
areaOfLaw criminal jurisdiction
federal Indian law
arguedDate 1977-10-04
1977-10-05
characterization judicially created limitation on tribal sovereignty
citation 435 U.S. 191
constitutionalBasisDiscussed U.S. Constitution Article I
U.S. Constitution Article II
U.S. Constitution Article III
U.S. Constitution Article VI
courtTerm 1977 Term
decisionDate 1978-03-06
dissentingJustices Thurgood Marshall
William J. Brennan Jr.
dissentingOpinionBy Thurgood Marshall
geographicScope Indian country in the United States
hasJurisdiction Supreme Court of the United States
holding Criminal jurisdiction over non-Indians in Indian country rests with federal or state authorities unless Congress provides otherwise
Tribal courts lack inherent criminal jurisdiction to try and punish non-Indians
impact contributed to jurisdictional gaps in Indian country criminal justice
limited tribal sovereignty in criminal matters involving non-Indians
restricted tribal courts’ authority over non-Indian defendants
jurisdictionType appellate
legalIssue scope of inherent tribal sovereignty
tribal criminal jurisdiction over non-Indians
locationOfEvents Port Madison Indian Reservation
majorityJustices Byron R. White
Harry A. Blackmun
John Paul Stevens
Lewis F. Powell Jr.
Potter Stewart
Warren E. Burger
William H. Rehnquist
majorityOpinionBy William H. Rehnquist
originatingCourt Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals
page 191
petitioner Mark David Oliphant
relatedCase Duro v. Reina
Montana v. United States
United States v. Wheeler
relatedLegislation Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968
Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013
reporter United States Reports
respondent Suquamish Indian Tribe
linked to: Suquamish Tribe
subsequentDevelopment partially modified by congressional statutes restoring limited tribal criminal jurisdiction over some non-Indians
tribeInvolved Suquamish Tribe
volume 435

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Native American sovereignty historicallyArticulatedIn Oliphant v. Suquamish Indian Tribe (1978)
United States federal Indian law and policy shapedBy Oliphant v. Suquamish Indian Tribe
linked to: Oliphant v. Suquamish Indian Tribe (1978)