Tribal Justice

Posted on March 22, 2024 by dwilliams

ASU Native American Law Students Association and Law Journal for Social Justice joined forces to host a symposium on March 15. The Symposium of Tribal Justice informed the audience on Federal Indian law and Tribal Law and how Tribal Nations form and regulate their justice systems in alignment with both cultural values and protecting their communities.

Natalia Sells, a third-year law student, helped organize the event and explains the difference between Federal Indian law and Tribal law: Federal Indian law is the federal government constraining or relaxing the constrictions they have placed on a tribe’s inherent sovereign authority, whereas tribal law is the tribe exercising their inherent authority. Tribal law is important because it’s the tribe exercising their sovereignty and power for the benefit and protection of their people and could be aligned with cultural values.

Derrick Beetso (’10), professor of practice and director of Indian Gaming and Tribal Self-Governance programs, presented on Jurisdiction in Indian Country, and Alfred Urbina, attorney general for the Pascua Yaqui Nation, presented on the Tribal Law and Order Act (TLOA) and the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). Presenters on the Tribal Judges panel included April Olson (’06), chief judge for Tolowa Dee-ni’ Nation, appellate judge for Hualapai Nation and appellate judge for Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, and Honorable Anthony Hill (’06), chief judge of the Gila River Indian Community Court.

“What I loved best was all the speakers are Indigenous attorneys working towards the mission of strengthening tribes,” said Sells. “The presenters are truly our role models about the good work our law degrees can accomplish in Indian Country. I had never considered it before until I had the opportunity to work for a tribal court and upon meeting Judge Hill. Judge Hill always spoke highly about the role a tribal court judge had in the community, especially when one is from the community. I see serving as a tribal court judge as a great way to help one’s community in providing a stable judicial system that upholds tribal law that was enacted with the people and culture in mind.”

We appreciate ASU NALSA, LJSJ and the Academy for Justice for organizing a great event!

ASU Law students sworn into local Tribal Court

Posted on March 18, 2024 by dwilliams

On Jan. 29, Professor Patty Ferguson-Bohnee and Indian Legal Clinic students Keely Driscoll (2L), Samir Grover (3L) and Chelsi Tsosie (3L) traveled to the Gila River Indian Community Courthouse in Sacaton, Arizona. Students were sworn into the Gila River Community Court by Chief Judge Anthony Hill (’06). Judge Charles Aragon led an informative tour during which the students met other judges and staff.

While touring the facility, students met GRIC prosecutors Ammon Orr (’16) and Carleton Giff.

As a first-time student attorney, Grover and Driscoll recently appeared before the Ak-Chin Indian Community Court in Maricopa, Arizona for hearings on behalf of clients.

“It gives me an opportunity to apply skills I have learned and engage in meaningful work that helps real people,” said Grover. “It also gives me an advantage once I actually become a lawyer. I am glad I got my first time representing a client at arraignment over with. Also, meeting with the client in-person prior to the arraignment and going over plea options was surreal. I felt like I’m finally engaging in the type of work I envisioned myself doing, especially by representing a client in the Ak-Chin Indian Community Court.”

“Practicing in a tribal courtroom during law school has brought so much meaning to the concepts, rules and advice I’ve learned in classes so far,” said Tsosie. “I think because of that, I’m going to enter my future career as a more effective advocate than I would have without it. Not only that, the experience of observing Ak-Chin Indian Community implement its sovereignty through its court system was insightful. I’m thankful the Indian Legal Clinic has provided this opportunity to work with clients in a real impactful way.”

We appreciate the Gila River Indian Community Courthouse and Ak-Chin Indian Community Court for providing our law students with practical training to become effective advocates for justice.

Celebrating excellence, one award at a time

Posted on October 13, 2023 by dwilliams

The Native American Bar Association of Arizona (NABA-AZ) held its 2023 Annual Seven Generations Awards Dinner and Silent Auction and honored several of our ILP family. Congratulations to this year’s award recipients! ILP advisory council member Judith Dworkin received the Lifetime Achievement Award, Angela Willeford-Salazar (MLS ’23) with the Office of Congressional & Legislative Affairs’ Get Out the Vote Committee received the Community Leadership Award and Kiyoko Patterson (’03) received the Member of the Year Award.

Eleven ASU Native American Law Students Association (NALSA) students received the NABA-AZ Scholarship for their academic achievement. Congratulations to ILP students: Rachel Carroll (3L), Keely Driscoll (2L), Shandiin Herrera (2L), Clayton Kinsey (3L), Kaleb Lester (2L), Sadie Red Eagle (2L), Maryam Salazar (3L), Natalia Sells (3L), Ronnie Strode III (1L), Alexandra Trousdale (3L) and Makai Zuniga (2L).

The NABA-AZ are integral to student success and we appreciate their commitment to ILP students.

Student attorneys at Gila River

Posted on April 7, 2023 by dwilliams

In January, Professor Patty Ferguson-Bohnee and the Indian Legal Clinic students Ashleigh Fixico (3L), Noah Goldenberg (3L), Kristina Major (2L) and Chanel Simon (3L) traveled to the Gila River Indian Community (GRIC) Courthouse in Sacaton, Arizona and observed arraignments in person. While at the court, the ILC student attorneys were sworn in to the Gila River Indian Community Court by Chief Judge Anthony Hill (’06). Judge Charles Aragon led an informative tour during which the students met other judges and staff.

After visiting the courthouse, the student attorneys visited the Gila River Prosecutor’s Office. Chief Prosecutor Voyles and Carleton Giff offered career advice and insight into a prosecutor’s role. ILP alum and prosecutor Dustin Rector (’21) demonstrated the art of a winning closing argument. ILC student attorneys work with the Gila River Prosecutor’s Office on traffic trials.

On March 7, Goldenberg successfully represented the Gila River Indian Community in a civil traffic trial.

“My experience working with GRIC is a great example of why ASU was the perfect school for me,” said Goldenberg. “I came to law school to study Indian law, with the hopes of working with tribes after graduation. I don’t know of many other opportunities where students have the opportunity to get real, live courtroom experience in tribal courts. I loved being able to work hands on. The whole point of clinic is taking what you have learned in law school and applying it in the real world. It is a unique opportunity and great honor to be able to do that with tribes. ASU Law produces talented Native attorneys, and this was one of the experiences that explains why. My advice to future clinic students is to volunteer and take every opportunity to work in tribal courts. It was an immense honor to contribute to tribal sovereignty and self-determination.”

The Indian Legal Clinic appreciates the Gila River Indian Community for providing clinic students formative career experiences.

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Honore Callingham (’18)
Law Fellow, Indian Legal Clinic, ASU Law

ILP students compete in UCLA Moot Court

Posted on April 7, 2023 by dwilliams

ILP students Chad Edwards (3L), Samir Grover (2L), Ryan Maxey (3L) and Chanel Simon (3L) competed in the UCLA Williams Institute Moot Court Competition. The competition is the only moot court competition dedicated exclusively to gender and sexuality that involved competitors from across the country. Students prepared an appellate brief on the constitutionality of a hypothetical ban on conversion therapy and gender affirming care under the first and fourteenth amendments. On March 11, ILP teams had the opportunity to argue both sides of the issue at UCLA.

“Being involved with a moot court competition provides a complementary experience to law school classes,” said Simon. “I would recommend future ILP and NALSA students to participate in the competition because it gives you the chance to apply your writing and public speaking skills, while also learning how to improve those skills with feedback from professors, classmates, and volunteer judges. Moot court competitions also provide the opportunity to travel and meet law students from across the country.”

Thank you to our coaches, Faculty Director Patty Ferguson-Bohnee and Native Vote Fellows Torey Dolan (’19) and Blair Tarman-Toner (’21), and volunteer judges for helping them prepare.

Water rights case discussion

Posted on April 7, 2023 by dwilliams

On March 14, NALSA and the American Constitution Society co-hosted a lecture discussion on the U.S. Supreme Court case Arizona v. Navajo Nation. Both Director Derrick Beetso (’10) and Heather Whiteman Runs Him, director of the Tribal Justice Clinic at the University of Arizona, worked with their respective teams and filed an amicus brief in support of the Supreme Court case.

Beetso and the Indian Legal Clinic recently filed an amicus brief on behalf of the Diné Hataałii Association. The brief gives a human identity because it gives an understanding of who the people are. Whiteman Runs Him, with her team, also filed an amicus brief that focuses on the United States v. Winters decision of 1908 on behalf of tribal governments, the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians and the San Luis Rey Indian Water Authority.

Whiteman Runs Him explains the legal framework of the Winters case: “when the United States sets aside and reserves land for a permanent homeland for an Indian Tribe, like it did in the Treaty with the Navajo Nation, there’s an implied reservation of enough water, sufficient amount of water, to fulfill the purposes of that reservation. Based on that purpose for which the Navajo Nation reservation was set aside, there should be some affirmative duty on the U.S. to take meaningful actions to secure that water and bring that water to a point where the Navajo Nation can use it, rely on it and build on it. And that has not happened.”

ASU teams go to National NALSA Moot Court

Posted on March 10, 2023 by dwilliams

Congratulations to the ASU Native American Law Students Association (NALSA) moot court teams for a great showing at the annual National NALSA moot court competition. Autumn Shone (3L), Ashleigh Fixico (3L), Noah Goldenberg (3L) and Clayton Kinsey (2L) represented us well.

Goldenberg and Kinsey won Best Brief and advanced to the top 16.

Thank you to our coaches Faculty Director Patty Ferguson-Bohnee, Native Vote Fellows Torey Dolan (’19) and Blair Tarman-Toner (’21) for helping them prepare. We also appreciate all of the faculty, alumni and friends for judging practice rounds to help prepare our teams.

While in Oklahoma the students networked with alumni and visited the First Americans Museum. This was a great weekend for ASU NALSA and ILP.

Your vote, your voice

Posted on November 16, 2022 by dwilliams

2022 is another year that has seen Arizona Native voters and their rights disproportionally challenged on the ballot. “Native advocates say voter ID rules in Proposition 309 could disenfranchise Arizona Indigenous voters,” said Native Vote fellow Torey Dolan (’19) in her interview with the AZ Central. The article discusses the impact that Proposition 309 will have on Tribal communities if passed. Proposition 309 would limit the forms of identification that are acceptable for in-person voting and would eliminate many forms of Tribal identification that voters currently rely on.

Despite this ballot measure and redistricting issues, the Indian Legal Clinic’s Native Vote Election Protection team organized and strategized with its partners to remain steadfast leading up to Election Day. Dolan presented at the Tribal leaders meeting hosted by the Inter Tribal Council of Arizona and discussed the propositions’ impacts on Tribal communities and Native voters.

Indian Legal Clinic student attorneys Mallory Moore (3L) and Autumn Shone (3L) led and conducted two trainings for volunteers.

This year, 66 volunteers served as Election Protectors stationed at multiple polling locations to assist voters at 9 Tribal communities: the Ak-Chin Indian Community, the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation, the Gila River Indian Community, the Navajo Nation, the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, the San Carlos Apache Tribe, the Tohono O’odham Nation and the White Mountain Apache Tribe.

On Election Day, the Native Vote team worked with the Navajo Nation to assist in emergency litigation due to delays in the opening of a polling location in Many Farms, Arizona. Katherine Belzowski, an attorney with the Navajo Nation Department of Justice Economic and Community Development Unit, said “The Indian Legal Clinic was instrumental to the Navajo Nation’s success in the 2022 Election. ILC worked with the Navajo Department of Justice (NDOJ) to monitor state polling locations across the Nation. With ILC’s assistance NDOJ was able to timely investigate and respond every concern submitted to the ILC and NDOJ voting hotline.”

Thank you to all volunteers, advocates and allies for serving as Election Protectors and organizing the Native Vote power! With your help, we were able to assist voters through the hotline and in the field, ensuring that Native voters were able to cast ballots free from intimidation and without undue challenges. This year’s ILC Native Vote leadership team includes dedicated ILP Native Vote Fellows Torey Dolan (’19) and Blair Tarman-Toner (’20), student attorney leads Mallory Moore (3L) and Autumn Shone (3L), and student attorneys Chad Edwards (3L), Brittany Habbart (3L), Michael LaValley (3L), and Ruben Zendejas (3L), under the supervision of Professor Patty Ferguson-Bohnee.

Indian Rights Summer Fellowship recipients

Posted on October 18, 2022 by dwilliams

The Indian Legal Program has been partnering with the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community (SRPMIC) and receives grant funding to offer Indian Rights Summer Fellowship, which allows students to design their summer job. The purpose of the Indian Rights Summer Fellowship is to promote public service in Indian country by providing funding to students who are working on legal issues affecting individual Indians or Indian Nations. The Fellowship provide students with an opportunity to undertake practical experiences with tribes, tribal/indigenous organizations, educational programs and/or nonprofits. This year, five students received the Indian Rights Summer Fellowship and share their summer job experiences.

Over the summer, Gwendolyn Bell (3L) worked with the Portland Area Indian Health Board on health policy projects and research. One of the projects she worked on was a Long-Term Care resource for Washington state, which provides detailed information on long-term health care services including information on staffing, building, care, and other requirements. It also includes sources for funding and other resources, and links to the Washington Administrative Code and Revised Code pertaining to that service. Bell also worked in making a resource for internal use of federal legislation and policy about Indian health. Finally, she assisted in preparing a bi-weekly legislation and policy update for member Tribes and organizations. The newsletter update presented information on new policies and legislation in the health care and Indian health areas, as well as information on town halls, Tribal leader meetings, and opportunities to write comments on pending policy.

“I am incredibly grateful for the funding provided to me by the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, as I would have been unable to accept this incredible opportunity otherwise,” Bell said. “I greatly enjoyed my experience this summer and learned a vast amount about the field which will help me in my career.”

Ashleigh Fixico (3L) had the honor of working with ILP alum, Judge Diane Humetewa (’93) in the Arizona Federal District Court. “Having the opportunity to be in the courtroom and experience live proceedings was the highlight of my law school career, which began during the height of COVID and virtual learning,” Fixico said. She enjoyed working with another ILP alum, Alexander Mallory (’19), a law clerk to Judge Humetewa. “He always provided helpful advice and the sincerest interest in you as a person. This summer was about growing up and accepting that my career as a student is almost over. I am thankful for Judge Humetewa and her chambers for taking me in and offering me space to grow into the individual I came to law school to become.”

Ryan Maxey (3L) spent the summer working as an intern for Denise Turner-Walsh, attorney general of the Rincon Band of Luiseño Indians. “It was an incredible opportunity where I got to utilize my knowledge of federal Indian law in a practical setting,” Maxey said. He researched and briefed the AG and other tribal government officials on evolving areas of federal law, including environmental and labor law, as they applied to the tribe. He also worked on fee-to-trust applications and helped draft HEARTH act-compliant residential leasing regulations. “I’m incredibly grateful that my Salt River Fellowship helped make this experience possible,” Maxey said.

“I’m incredibly grateful that my Salt River Fellowship helped make this experience possible,” Maxey said.

Sophie Staires (2L) worked as a legal intern for the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community Prosecutor’s Office. She worked closely with the criminal team and was able to participate in a number of dependency cases as well. She hit the ground running and was tasked with reviewing new police reports and helping prosecutors with charging decisions and drafting complaints. Before long she was assisting prosecutors by writing and filing motions, compiling documents for disclosure, and negotiating plea deals with defense advocates. Staires sat in on arraignments and hearings 3-4 days a week, and eventually obtained a license to speak in court. Now she is able to assist with weekly arraignments.

“Representing the Community in court is an honor and a privilege, and not one that I take lightly,” Staires said. “It is intimidating, but the attorneys are so supportive, making it the perfect place to work on litigation skills and build confidence.”

Over the summer, she collaborated with another fellow ILP intern, Alexandra Trousdale, on a research project: how different jurisdictions handle competency determinations and civil commitment. At the end of the summer, they presented on the Supreme Court decision Oklahoma v Castro-Huerta and its implications for tribal jurisdictions before the Native American Bar Association of Arizona (NABA-AZ) board.

“I think my favorite part of the summer was working with defense counsel to put together a plea deal,” she said. “It is an honor to have the trust of the prosecutors, and a relationship of mutual respect with the defense attorneys. My time at Salt River has shown me that it is possible to create a criminal justice system that is supportive, rehabilitative, and community oriented. It has been an incredible experience and has fueled my passion for serving tribal communities.”

Alexandra Trousdale (1L) worked for the Tribal Prosecutors Office at the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community over the past summer. She had the opportunity to get a diverse taste of legal practice in both civil and criminal prosecution. Trousdale observed several court proceedings and provided insight in various cases, including criminal prosecution, mental health evaluation, and child dependency. She also drafted disclosure statements, deferred prosecution agreements and plea agreements and took lead in plea negotiations with defense attorneys. At end of the summer, she led a presentation with a fellow ILP intern, Sophie Staires, on the Castro-Huerta decision before the NABA-AZ board.

ILC Students at Ak-Chin Court

Posted on April 18, 2022 by dwilliams

On March 15, Gwendolyn Bell (2L) and David Streamer (3L) appeared in court for the first time as student attorneys. Bell and Streamer represented their clients at arraignment hearings at the Ak-Chin Indian Community Court in Maricopa, Arizona. Although both students had just returned from Nebraska where they participated in the ILP traveling class, “Contemporary Issues in Tribal Economic Development,” they entered the hearings with successfully negotiated plea agreements and their clients were released later that day after the judge accepted the plea agreements.

The Indian Legal Clinic appreciates the guidance of Chief Judge Yancy Jencsok provides to clinic students during their formative career experiences.