IN UNITED STATES V COOLEY, THE SUPREME COURT TACKLES ISSUES OF TRIBAL POLICE AUTHORITY

This morning the United States Supreme Court will hear arguments in United Stares v Cooley, a case on whether a tribal police officer has authority to detain a non-member on Indian land. ASK lawyer James Kilbourne participated in the amicus briefing process with the Native American Rights Fund Supreme Court Project and a upcoming work on Cherokee judicial history by former Cherokee Judge J Matthew Martin was cited in the Amicus Briefs.

The issue in this case is: Whether the lower courts erred in suppressing evidence on the theory that a police officer of an Indian tribe lacked authority to temporarily detain and search the respondent, Joshua James Cooley, a non-Indian, on a public right-of-way within a reservation based on a potential violation of state or federal law.

More information from SCOTUS Blog

For More: James W. Kilbourne, Jr. 

Updated: March 23, 2021