October Term 2020 · Docket 19-1414
Can tribal police detain non-members for state crimes?
The dispute centers on whether tribal officers hold inherent power to detain non-members for violating state law.
Verified source milestones
- — An official oral-argument transcript was verified.
- — An official oral-argument transcript was verified.
- — An official Court opinion was verified.
The arguments, in order
This case may have been argued more than once. Each entry below uses that session's official transcript. Later arguments do not erase earlier ones.
Argument 1 ·
What happened at the argument
Feigin asserts tribes possess core inherent authority to investigate and detain suspects.
Henkel contends tribes lack sovereign authority over non-Indians and Congress holds plenary power.
Roberts questions the basis for treating executive power differently from legislative power.
Alito asks for a test to distinguish retained versus unretained aspects of tribal sovereignty.
Read the official transcript for this argument · Official argument details
Sources used for this argument breakdown
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 10, lines 17-25 — Transcript, file page 10, lines 17-25
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 11, lines 31-43 — Transcript, file page 11, lines 31-43
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 13, lines 25-33 — Transcript, file page 13, lines 25-33
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 14, lines 17-33 — Transcript, file page 14, lines 17-33
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 15, lines 17-41 — Transcript, file page 15, lines 17-41
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 16, lines 53-39 — Transcript, file page 16, lines 53-39
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 16, lines 9-25 — Transcript, file page 16, lines 9-25
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 33, lines 15-11 — Transcript, file page 33, lines 15-11
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 4, lines 11-21 — Transcript, file page 4, lines 11-21
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 4, lines 23-51 — Transcript, file page 4, lines 23-51
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 5, lines 53-35 — Transcript, file page 5, lines 53-35
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 51-13 — Transcript, file page 6, lines 51-13
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 65, lines 37-9 — Transcript, file page 65, lines 37-9
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 68, lines 11-13 — Transcript, file page 68, lines 11-13
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 45-9 — Transcript, file page 7, lines 45-9
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 8, lines 35-49 — Transcript, file page 8, lines 35-49
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 9, lines 45-55 — Transcript, file page 9, lines 45-55
A citizen's guide to the whole case
What this case is about
The case tests the scope of inherent tribal sovereignty over non-members.
Official sources for this section
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 33, lines 15-11 — Transcript, file page 33, lines 15-11
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 4, lines 23-51 — Transcript, file page 4, lines 23-51
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 65, lines 37-9 — Transcript, file page 65, lines 37-9
How the case got here
The Supreme Court heard oral argument in this case on March 23, 2021.
Official sources for this section
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 4, lines 11-21 — Transcript, file page 4, lines 11-21
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 68, lines 11-13 — Transcript, file page 68, lines 11-13
What each side wants
The tribe seeks recognition of inherent power to detain non-members.
The government seeks a ruling that tribes lack authority over non-members.
Official sources for this section
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 33, lines 15-11 — Transcript, file page 33, lines 15-11
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 4, lines 23-51 — Transcript, file page 4, lines 23-51
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 65, lines 37-9 — Transcript, file page 65, lines 37-9
What each side says
The tribe argues inherent sovereignty includes detaining suspects for other sovereigns' laws.
The government argues tribes lack sovereign authority over non-Indians.
Official sources for this section
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 33, lines 15-11 — Transcript, file page 33, lines 15-11
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 4, lines 23-51 — Transcript, file page 4, lines 23-51
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 65, lines 37-9 — Transcript, file page 65, lines 37-9
What the justices asked
Chief Justice Roberts asks how executive power differs from legislative power under Montana.
Justice Alito requests a general test for distinguishing retained tribal sovereignty aspects.
Official sources for this section
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 10, lines 17-25 — Transcript, file page 10, lines 17-25
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 11, lines 31-43 — Transcript, file page 11, lines 31-43
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 13, lines 25-33 — Transcript, file page 13, lines 25-33
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 14, lines 17-33 — Transcript, file page 14, lines 17-33
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 15, lines 17-41 — Transcript, file page 15, lines 17-41
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 16, lines 53-39 — Transcript, file page 16, lines 53-39
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 16, lines 9-25 — Transcript, file page 16, lines 9-25
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 5, lines 53-35 — Transcript, file page 5, lines 53-35
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 51-13 — Transcript, file page 6, lines 51-13
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 68, lines 11-13 — Transcript, file page 68, lines 11-13
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 45-9 — Transcript, file page 7, lines 45-9
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 8, lines 35-49 — Transcript, file page 8, lines 35-49
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 9, lines 45-55 — Transcript, file page 9, lines 45-55
Why it matters
This case defines the limits of tribal police power over non-members.
Official sources for this section
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 33, lines 15-11 — Transcript, file page 33, lines 15-11
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 4, lines 23-51 — Transcript, file page 4, lines 23-51
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 65, lines 37-9 — Transcript, file page 65, lines 37-9
What happens next
This article currently covers the argument record. Use the official docket link for later case activity.
Official sources for this section
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 10, lines 17-25 — Transcript, file page 10, lines 17-25
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 11, lines 31-43 — Transcript, file page 11, lines 31-43
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 13, lines 25-33 — Transcript, file page 13, lines 25-33
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 14, lines 17-33 — Transcript, file page 14, lines 17-33
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 15, lines 17-41 — Transcript, file page 15, lines 17-41
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 16, lines 53-39 — Transcript, file page 16, lines 53-39
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 16, lines 9-25 — Transcript, file page 16, lines 9-25
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 4, lines 11-21 — Transcript, file page 4, lines 11-21
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 5, lines 53-35 — Transcript, file page 5, lines 53-35
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 6, lines 51-13 — Transcript, file page 6, lines 51-13
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 68, lines 11-13 — Transcript, file page 68, lines 11-13
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 7, lines 45-9 — Transcript, file page 7, lines 45-9
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 8, lines 35-49 — Transcript, file page 8, lines 35-49
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 9, lines 45-55 — Transcript, file page 9, lines 45-55
Official Court provenance
Official docket and case history · Official Supreme Court oral-argument detail page
Verified official opinions and orders
Title and summary sources
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 33, lines 15-11 — Transcript, file page 33, lines 15-11
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 4, lines 23-51 — Transcript, file page 4, lines 23-51
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 65, lines 37-9 — Transcript, file page 65, lines 37-9
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 33, lines 15-11 — Transcript, file page 33, lines 15-11
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 4, lines 23-51 — Transcript, file page 4, lines 23-51
- Official Supreme Court Transcript — file page 65, lines 37-9 — Transcript, file page 65, lines 37-9
Revision history
- Revision 1 · Post Opinion ·
Correction: Rewritten to the concise citizen-facing editorial standard.
- Revision 2 · Post Opinion ·
Correction: Migrated to the dated official Court activity contract without model use.