Oklahoma’s Five Tribes won’t join governor’s McGirt task force

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s largest tribes won’t join Gov. Kevin Stitt’s new task force on law enforcement and jurisdiction issues stemming from the U.S. Supreme Court’s McGirt ruling.

The Five Tribes — the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee (Creek) and Seminole Nations — disagreed with how Stitt’s recent executive order characterized the McGirt decision.

In a joint statement, leaders of the Five Tribes said the McGirt v. Oklahoma decision, which found that much of eastern Oklahoma remains reservation land, was a positive public safety ruling that restored the tribes’ ability to prosecute tribal citizens in Indian Country.

“The Five Tribes cannot participate in an effort that spreads falsehoods about the law, attempts to minimize tribal voices and engages in political attacks instead of constructive government-to-government dialogue,” the tribal leaders said.

The tribes have long been dedicated to improving public safety for all Oklahoma, the leaders said.

Stitt spokesperson Abegail Cave said she hopes the tribes will reconsider. Regardless, the governor will continue to seek input from other parties, she said.

“By initiating the One Oklahoma Task Force in good faith, Gov. Stitt created an opportunity for a solution-oriented dialogue with our tribal partners on a critical public safety issue, McGirt,” she said in a statement. “The tribes wanted a seat at the table and to influence the state’s response to the issue. Gov. Stitt gave them a seat at the table, and they’ve chosen not to participate.”

Stitt created the task force on Dec. 22 after a dispute between an Okmulgee County jailer and a Muscogee Lighthorse Police officer raised questions about tribal jurisdiction, law enforcement issues and cross-deputization agreements with tribal police.

Stitt’s order said the McGirt decision created “havoc” in the state, and “it is clear that the McGirt decision’s negative effects are unresolved.”

The governor tasked the 13-member task force with making recommendations on creating uniform cross-deputization and jail agreements in addition to suggesting federal legislation to address the aftermath of the McGirt ruling.

Stitt and the tribes have repeatedly clashed on tribal sovereignty and public safety issues in the wake of the 2020 court decision.

Some tribal leaders criticized the limited number of task force seats for Indigenous Oklahomans. Stitt set up the task force so it includes one member representing the Five Tribes and one member representing the state’s other 33 tribes.

It wasn’t clear Wednesday what would happen with the seat reserved for a member of the Five Tribes or if the smaller tribes plan to participate in the task force.

The rest of the panel will comprise appointees designated by public safety agencies and groups in addition to one representative from the Attorney General’s Office and one person appointed by the House speaker and another by the Senate president pro tempore.

Stitt asked his task force, which has not yet set a date for its first meeting, to submit a report by June 1.

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