Native American Hunting Rights-Pending Supreme Court Case

[Colorado Cowboy]

If any of you are subscribers to "Wyoming Wildlife", there is a very good article about a pending case before the US Supreme Court that could effect hunting in Wyoming ....and possibly a large number of western states.

A member of the Crow tribe was caught hunting and killing several elk in Wyoming with no license/elk tag and out of season. He was a nonresident and was cited. He was convicted, but claimed treaty rights to hunt in "historic" lands. After many appeals, it is now before the Supreme Court, with a decision expected in June.

If his appeal is upheld, it could be necessary for States where Native Americans have reservations and treaties that deal with hunting rights to totally reevaluate and possibly change how they manage big game.

There is a lot of talk and rumors here in SW Colorado about Native American hunting all year, no tags/licenses and even claiming they have a right by treaty to trespass on private property to hunt their "historic" hunting lands. Wardens won't talk about it and it seems like lots of rumors, but no real facts.

Read the article if you can. Could be big news if this case is overturned and their hunting rights upheld.

 

[shootbrownelk]

I guess that'd be a disaster for anyone hunting National Forest or BLM (Federal) lands if the treaties of yesteryear are upheld. The Game herds will suffer too, just like they have on the Reservations.

 

[kidoggy]

If any of you are subscribers to "Wyoming Wildlife", there is a very good article about a pending case before the US Supreme Court that could effect hunting in Wyoming ....and possibly a large number of western states.

A member of the Crow tribe was caught hunting and killing several elk in Wyoming with no license/elk tag and out of season. He was a nonresident and was cited. He was convicted, but claimed treaty rights to hunt in "historic" lands. After many appeals, it is now before the Supreme Court, with a decision expected in June.

If his appeal is upheld, it could be necessary for States where Native Americans have reservations and treaties that deal with hunting rights to totally reevaluate and possibly change how they manage big game.

There is a lot of talk and rumors here in SW Colorado about Native American hunting all year, no tags/licenses and even claiming they have a right by treaty to trespass on private property to hunt their "historic" hunting lands. Wardens won't talk about it and it seems like lots of rumors, but no real facts.

Read the article if you can. Could be big news if this case is overturned and their hunting rights upheld.

I for one am sick and tired of hearing how minorities deserve special treatment! they lost the wars and if they wish to live exclusive from our constitution, they are not entitled to anything we do not deem fit to grant.
it is way past time to end reservations and call Indians what they are , either americans, entitled to the securities our constitution provides or not .and it is time for all minorities to live under the same rule of law and stop whining about the injustices their ancestors may or may not have faced.

OR we can just play cowboys and indian again.

 

[BKC]

If his appeal is upheld, it could be necessary for States where Native Americans have reservations and treaties that deal with hunting rights to totally reevaluate and possibly change how they manage big game.

There is a lot of talk and rumors here in SW Colorado about Native American hunting all year, no tags/licenses and even claiming they have a right by treaty to trespass on private property to hunt their "historic" hunting lands. Wardens won't talk about it and it seems like lots of rumors, but no real facts.

CC this is, in my opinion, what has happened to the deer population in unit 74 and 75. I think agriculture has attracted these deer to crop lands and private ground but any public land that gets hunted basically year round suffers. I think and have been told that the high country deer are just not there anymore. A couple of reservations are real close and that doesn't help at all.

Personally, I work on those reservations from time to time and I have seen a deer hanging in in someones yard long enough to have the birds all over it. I will tell you, it hung in the sun for several weeks. I is sad to see that. I know what would happen if that occurred on the north side of the border of the res.

 

[87TT]

Can we all just self identify as Native American then?

 

[88man]

This case is gonna be very big.

 

[JimP]

The problem as I see it is that if they go by the treaties that were signed the "Native Americans" just may be in the right. When I was in college I read a few of them and they gave them a very broad area where they could hunt and fish.

I know that in Utah that the Ute's have contested a large section of north eastern Utah and if you look at how the treaty was written up they own a very large chunk of land, and not just where their boundaries are located at now.

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

The crux of this case (it seems to me) is how we (the court) define "occupied areas". The treaty said the Native Americans who signed it had rights to hunt forever the unoccupied areas. Everything that was unoccupied when the treaty was signed has been totally changed. Wyoming is now a state and National Forests are now what was once unoccupied. Depends on how the Supreme Court defines what unoccupied means today.

 

[Micah S]

I'm about 5% native American. How big of percentage do I have to be to hunt wherever I want when I want?

 

[dustin ray]

Iv been told i have high cheek boons and i was told as a child growing up that my grand mother was Indian from the winnebago trip does that count

 

[dirtclod Az.]

If you live in a different state,you are not a
"native" to another state to hunt in...
If I'm an Az. Native Indian I can't hunt out of season on tribal grounds in Minn!

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

Actually tribal membership is the requirement, not what state you live in. For example the Navajo reservation is in 3 states (Az, NM & Ut) and tribal members can hunt on the reservation in any state without state permits.

 

[BKC]

Iv been told i have high cheek boons and i was told as a child growing up that my grand mother was Indian from the winnebago trip does that count

You have to give her credit for sticking to her story!

 

[kidoggy]

Can we all just self identify as Native American then?

don't see why not .it is now the American way.

 

[kidoggy]

actually since the so called "native americans" migrated to America over the bering strait, an argument can be made that they in fact are not natives of america either and the treaties are null and void.


I believe they should pay the white man reparations for the damage they have done to the herds and the mental anguish they are responsible for.

 

[Fink]

Actually tribal membership is the requirement, not what state you live in. For example the Navajo reservation is in 3 states (Az, NM & Ut) and tribal members can hunt on the reservation in any state without state permits.

I've been following this case for a little while now. I can't decide if this is going to have little to no effect, or if the impact will be catastrophic. I'm leaning towards catastrophic, should Herrera win.

CC, it was my understanding that the treaties in place are only for tribes with historic use patterns, i.e. the Seminole tribe never used the Bighorns, and couldnt go up there and hunt.

 

[CrimsonArrow]

We have several bands of native Americans in Minnesota, and they’re constantly testing the limits of their original treaty rights. I’ve generally been supportive of these rights, because they got such poor treatment from the government. Now, I’m just sick of it. They have nearly unrestricted hunting and fishing rights on their reservations, yet also have all the rights of white man outside these areas. It’s like dual citizenship, or having your cake and eating it too. Especially the bands who claim sovereignty. I say if you want to be a sovereign nation, they should require a passport to travel outside those boundaries, and our state government should not spend a penny of our tax dollars for roads or other improvements to ‘their’ land.

 

[kidoggy]

We have several bands of native Americans in Minnesota, and they’re constantly testing the limits of their original treaty rights. I’ve generally been supportive of these rights, because they got such poor treatment from the government. Now, I’m just sick of it. They have nearly unrestricted hunting and fishing rights on their reservations, yet also have all the rights of white man outside these areas. It’s like dual citizenship, or having your cake and eating it too. Especially the bands who claim sovereignty. I say if you want to be a sovereign nation, they should require a passport to travel outside those boundaries, and our state government should not spend a penny of our tax dollars for roads or other improvements to ‘their’ land.

yuuuuuuup!

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

I've been following this case for a little while now. I can't decide if this is going to have little to no effect, or if the impact will be catastrophic. I'm leaning towards catastrophic, should Herrera win.

CC, it was my understanding that the treaties in place are only for tribes with historic use patterns, i.e. the Seminole tribe never used the Bighorns, and couldnt go up there and hunt.

I too am really concerned if he wins.

You are totally correct on the "historic use" as I understand it.

 

[Yell Co AR Hunter]

In this situation the American Indian leaders need to step up and do what is right. They need to respect the resource. They already seem to have a bad history of doing this on their own lands. We all know the settlers did not set a very good example. I have a letter from a family member writing back home about his travels and hunting in South Western Arkansas. In the 1860's "our party of 5 killed 70 buffalo, 30 bear, and 50 deer all in the best order. It is land covered with stock." I am not Indian, but both of my children's great grandmothers were 1/2 Indian. They are not affiliated with any tribe.