Attorney General Jackley and Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribal Leaders
Attend Government-to-Government Consultation on Marijuana Grow Operation
PIERRE, S.D. – Attorney General Marty Jackley confirms that he has met with Flandreau Chairman Anthony Reider, Tribal Council members and leaders, regarding the marijuana operations of the Santee Sioux Tribe. As with the previous government-to-government meetings with tribal authorities, the meeting was both professional and important to gain each other’s continued perspective.
“As Attorney General, it remains my desire to work with Tribal authorities to avoid placing either Indian or non-Indian persons unnecessarily at risk from state or federal prosecution. The federal government has unnecessarily created uncertainty with its lack of uniformity with enforcement of existing law and its unresponsiveness to both State and Tribal authorities. While it remains my belief that the Tribe’s suspension of its grow operation is in the best interest of public health and safety, I will continue to work with Tribal leadership and the Flandreau community in order to ensure a mutual respect and compliance with both Tribal and State laws,” said Marty Jackley.
On July 31, 2015, Attorney General Jackley wrote to US Department of Justice Deputy Attorney General Sally Quillian Yates requesting guidance from the Department of Justice regarding its enforcement inconsistencies on marijuana. Specifically requesting that the United States Attorney General clarify to what extent, if any, its various memorandums apply to jurisdictions such as South Dakota wherein marijuana use and possession is a violation of both federal and state law. Finally, Attorney General Jackley made clear any guidance from the Department of Justice should take into consideration well established legal principals including the United States Supreme Court’s determination that State courts have jurisdiction over crimes committed by non-Indians within Indian country.
As of today’s date, the Department of Justice has not provided the requested guidance.
Link to letter: http://atg.sd.gov/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=49rOBKfsA54%3d&tabid=442
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Lets stop pretending.
There is no equivalence between state government and tribal “government”; or between the federal government and tribal “government”.
NA tribes are not sovereign in any meaningful, legal, or substantive sense of the word. They exist and control certain areas solely at the mercy of the federal government, and to a lesser extent, the state government. Tribal government is akin to a student council at a high school.
And the sooner that this fiction is acknowledged and rewritten by reality, real change is more likely to come.