The Ute Tribal Business Committee issued a statement following the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling on Tuesday that confirmed tribal jurisdiction within Myton townsite lands. “This decision means that the City of Myton will no longer be able to take unlawful actions, under color of governmental authority, to intrude upon the lives and activities of the Ute Indian Tribe or its membership,” shares the statement. “The Tribal Business Committee hopes that today’s decision will send a strong message to the State of Utah, Uintah County, Duchesne County, Wasatch County and the Cities of Myton and Duchesne that they will no longer be allowed to enforce their laws on our reservation…The Ute Indian Tribe remains committed to its goal of being a good neighbor and working with the State parties in this case on a government-to-government basis to ensure public safety for the entire Uintah Basin, however we cannot reach that goal when the State parties do not support equality for Tribal members or recognize our authority as a tribal government.” Tuesday’s Appeals Court ruling emphasized that all parties involved need to accept “as a fact of daily life” the “checkerboard jurisdiction – where state and local officials bear criminal enforcement power on some lands and federal and tribal officials oversee others.” Keep up with this ruling and what it means to local communities on
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To view court document, click here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0s248XHVM0VSjRST0xMYnB0Wms/view?usp=sharing
