[johninvegas]

Hi guys!

Just a couple of quick questions about the various Indian nations in Oklahoma. I hope I'm not being offensive to anyone.

First off, are they the same as reservations?

Second off, are the laws any different in the nations than the rest of the state, i.e. on reservations, you are under Indian law and they have their own police departments.

I suspect these two questions are no to both, but my wife is nervous about moving to "The Nations" and is worried about different laws.

Thanks!

[Rigeleer]

Reasonable questions! Nobody will be offended. A quick answer is that most of the people living in the "nations" are not Native Americans and living in the nations would not make your life different as a non-Native because the Nations aren't the same as reservations. (One county, Osage County (Bartlesville), is a reservation.) There are no tribal laws to affect you as somebody who is not a Native American, just the usual combination of federal, state, county, and city rules and laws you would find anywhere.

One caveat: a Supreme Court ruling (McGirt) has created some legal chaos which is still being hashed out. The ruling is that any crime occurring in a Nation in which either the victim or the perpetrator is a Native American has to be prosecuted according to federal or tribal laws but state laws are not applicable in such cases. So, a lot of Native American criminals are now appealing and getting their state convictions thrown out. The feds and tribal courts are scrambling to re-try them. Nobody wants to release a bunch of criminals. The state is presently asking the Supreme Court to at least modify the ruling so that past convictions need not be overturned. If you just google "McGirt ruling" you can easily find news and discussions.

But in any case, you won't notice a difference living in one of the Nations. Best of luck with your move.

[eddie gein]

Osage County is not a reservation although it is listed as such on many documents and maps. The issue was settled in Federal Court in 2010.

Secondly, Bartlesville is not in Osage County.