How the Supremes turned half of Oklahoma into a lawless land

A 2020 Supreme Court decision to turn over nearly half of Oklahoma to Native American tribes has effectively turned the eastern portion of the state into a lawless zone.

The McGirt v. Oklahoma decision has meant that “nothing” would be done in less serious cases, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Oklahoma field office Edward Gray previously said, according to The Wall Street Journal.

But the high court could hand back some jurisdiction to the state in a case known as Oklahoma v. Castro-Huerta, which deals with the question of whether the state should have the power to pursue crimes perpetrated by non-Native Americans against Native Americans on reservation land.

Until there is a decision in that case, many of the crimes will go unpunished because the federal government agencies investigating and prosecuting what the state can’t are overwhelmed by the caseload.

“The FBI is not prosecuting car thefts and burglaries, any kind of drugs, DUIs,” Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt previously told TheDCNF on the steps of the Supreme Court after the state presented arguments in the case in April. – READ MORE