Tribal Justice News Archive

A Q&A with our Tribal Justice Exchange team on respecting tribal sovereignty, the cultural wisdom behind tribal justice, and what they're doing to uplift Native youth.

Native children navigating the child welfare system are uniquely vulnerable. Read about the recent Supreme Court decision that protects their right to stay connected to their families and communities—and the smaller, no less inspiring efforts to support them on the ground.

An interview profile of Sarah Reckess, the director of our Upstate New York office: "We try to knock down silos, to challenge agencies and community leaders to think in new ways...to not be afraid of failure."

Peacemaking is a traditional Native American approach to justice. While the exact form peacemaking takes varies among tribes, it usually consists of one or more peacemakers—often community elders—who gently guide a conversation involving not only those directly involved in an offense or conflict but family members, friends, and the larger community.

An article examining the imposition of Western-style legal jurisprudence and “law” upon Native peoples. This article was originally published in the Journal of Court Innovation Special Issue on Tribal Justice.

Reviewed by Aaron Arnold
This book review was originally published in the Journal of Court Innovation Special Issue on Tribal Justice.

An article examining the extent to which four jurisdictions offer full faith and credit to tribal court judgments and the role their tribal-state judicial forums have in fostering cooperative relationships between tribal and state court systems. This article was originally published in the Journal of Court Innovation Special Issue on Tribal Justice.

This study examines pretrial release decision-making practices in tribal courts by pulling together evidence from focus group and survey responses, as well as tribal case law. This article was originally published in the Fall 2009 Journal of Court Innovation Special Issue on Tribal Justice.

An article exploring the potential uses of Indian nations’ inherent authority and treaties to exercise jurisdiction over non-Indian criminal offenders. This article was originally published in the Journal of Court Innovation Special Issue on Tribal Justice.

This report provides critical information to tribal court judges about developing and sustaining effective community supervision programs. This article was originally published in the Fall 2009 Journal of Court Innovation Special Issue on Tribal Justice.