Ex parte Crow Dog
Case Date: 05/03/1883
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Ex parte Crow Dog, 109 U.S. 556 (1883), was a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that a federal court did not have jurisdiction to try Crow Dog, a Native American (Indian) who killed another Indian on the reservation when the offense had been tried by the tribal council. In a conflict between two members of the same tribe, one killed the other while on reservation land. The tribe handled it according to Sioux tradition, and Crow Dog paid restitution. The United States government then tried Crow Dog for murder, and he was sentenced to hang. On his appeal to the Supreme Court, the court held that unless Congress authorized it, the courts had no jurisdiction to try the case.[1] This case resulted in Congress enacting the Major Crimes Act in 1885, placing 15 major crimes under federal jurisdiction if committed by an Indian against another Indian on a reservation or tribal land.
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