Marlow OKs deputation deal with BIA

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  • Law enforcement agencies are working jointly with tribal police departments.
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Many Oklahoma law enforcement agencies are working jointly with tribal police departments on crimes that occur on Indian land, even in cases where the alleged crime takes place within city limits.

Joint investigations and cross-deputations between agencies are the result of a 5-4 U.S. Supreme Court decision handed down in July when the justices ruled that much of eastern Oklahoma and other former reservations in the state remain under the control of the Five Tribes.

On Nov. 24, Marlow City Council unanimously approved a deputation agreement with the Bureau of Indian Affairs that give police officers a special law enforcement commission to proceed with investigations that involve tribal members. Marlow is located inside Chickasaw Nation.

Marlow City Manager Jason McPherson could not be reached for comment after the vote, but said prior to the meeting that the deputation of Marlow officers will aid in their duties.

“For instance, if an officer makes a traffic stop at Main and Highway 81 and the motorist pulls out his tribal card, then the officer will be able to continue with the stop since he has that cross-deputation,” McPherson said.

Chickasaw Lighthorse Police Chief Michael K. Manning said in a prepared statement that law enforcement agencies across the board are working together in light of the McGirt decision.

“Cross deputation agreements and cross-commissions are an important part of our collaboration with federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. These agreements have been an effective tool in overcoming jurisdictional challenges,” he said. “Cross deputation agreements and partnerships with fellow law enforcement agencies will continue to play an important role as we work to assume this new authority in a responsible manner.”

In 1996, the U.S. Supreme Court sentenced Cherokee tribal member Jimcy McGirt to life in prison for sex crimes against a minor. In 2017, he appealed his conviction to the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, claiming his state conviction should be overturned because the crime occurred on Indian land. The appeals court agreed with McGirt, but the case was appealed to the Supreme Court by Attorney General Mike Hunter.

The Supreme Court ruled Congress never disestablished the reservations as part of the Oklahoma Enabling Act of 1906, one year before Oklahoma became the 46th state. Because of that oversight, the high court ruled in July that the land belongs to the Five Tribes, but could still be disestablished by congressional action.

Since that decision was made, law enforcement agencies have been scrambling to deal with the high court’s decision while also working with tribal police on ways to handle crimes that occur on Indian land, but in city limits.

Officer Andrew Grubbs, Lawton’s public information officer, said officers are used as backup when crimes occur on tribal land or they involve tribal members. The number of those incidents is limited.

“I think we’ve responded twice with tribal police (since the court decision) on a couple of welfare checks or domestics and they (tribal police) conducted the interviews. Our officers were backing them up,” he said.

Meanwhile, Duncan Police Chief Danny Ford said his department has had a long-standing cross-deputation agreement with the Chickasaw Nation and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

“We’ve had them since they opened the casino,” Ford said.

The bigger issue will involve jails since the Chickasaw Nation has no contracts with correctional facilities.

“All of this is pretty new, and no one knows a lot,” he said.

However, Ford acknowledged that the Chickasaw Nation has said it would work jointly with Duncan police and the Oklahoma Bureau of Investigation on some cases, including homicides. Part of the answer centers on the location of the crime and if a tribal member is under investigation.

“Right now, they (Chickasaws) have said they will work with the state (OSBI),” the chief said. “In the past, we would work the case, but now we notify the tribe if it involves a tribal member and they’ll contact the OSBI.”

Duncan police typically use the OSBI to conduct the forensic portion of a homicide investigation, but work the rest of the case with local detectives. Ford said he’s unaware if the Lighthorse police department has trained homicide investigators.