NCJ Number
69939
Date Published
1980
Length
471 pages
Annotation
Testimony given at hearings before the Select Committee on Indian Affairs of the U.S. Senate covers three bills concerned with jurisdiction on Indian reservations.
Abstract
Senate bill 1181 authorizes the States and the Indian tribes to enter into manual agreements and compacts respecting jurisdiction and governmental operations in Indian country. Senate bill 1722, the bill to reform the Federal criminal law, contains one part relevant to Indian affairs, section 161(i), which deals with retrocession of jurisdiction to the United States from States that previously assumed jurisdiction under Public Law 83-280. The final bill, Senate bill 2832, establishes a special magistrate with jurisdiction over Federal offenses within Indian country and authorizes tribal and local police officers to enforce Federal laws within their respective jurisdictions, and for other purposes. Testimony of numerous witnesses is presented, including that of officials from the Department of Justice, tribal council members of several Indian tribes (Chemehuevi, Blackfeet, Yakima, and Choctaw), the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the National Tribal Chairmen's Association. The text of the bills is included, as well as additional related material. Footnotes are provided. Statements received subsequent to the hearings are appended.