Tulsa says litigation continues despite dismissal of Hooper

Dec. 18—The city of Tulsa said litigation against the prosecution of Native Americans for municipal offenses was not over after a federal judge dismissed Hooper v. Tulsa in line with an appellate court's ruling that the city did not have the proper authority.

Tulsa argued the city can still prosecute Native Americans for municipal violations, despite the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in McGirt v. Oklahoma. Tulsa claims Section 14 of the Curtis Act, a law from 1898 that predates Oklahoma's statehood, gives the city that authority.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit ruled the Act only applied to Tulsa prior to Oklahoma's statehood, when the city operated under Arkansas law, and that it "no longer applied" in modern times and ordered the case to be dismissed by a federal judge in the Northern District of Oklahoma.

Despite the dismissal of the case, the city in a statement to the media said it will continue to enforce all laws to all individuals within its jurisdiction.

"The dismissal of one case, for one specific issue, does not conclude the determination of jurisdictional authority and there are other cases ongoing that will help further clarify jurisdictional authority in the future," the city said.

The case began after Justin Hooper, a member of the Choctaw Nation, was fined $150 for a traffic violation in 2018 by the Tulsa Police Department.

Hooper filed for post-conviction relief following the decision in McGirt v. Oklahoma recognizing the Muscogee (Creek) Nation was never disestablished and the state of Oklahoma did not have criminal jurisdiction over crimes committed by Native Americans.

A municipal judge for the city of Tulsa and the Northern District of Oklahoma agreed with the city's argument and denied Hooper's motion before the federal appeals court reversed the decision.

Judges for the 10th Circuit remanded the case back to the Northern District of Oklahoma "for proceedings consistent with" the court's opinion.

That decision was appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which declined to hear the case.

U.S. District Judge William P. Johnson dismissed the case Dec. 15 without prejudice.

"As a matter of Tenth Circuit law, Section 14 of the Curtis Act no longer applies to Tulsa and therefore Tulsa no longer has jurisdiction over municipal violations committed by its Indian inhabitants this court lacks subject matter jurisdiction over Mr. Hooper's appeal from the municipal court and the appeal is dismissed without prejudice," Williams wrote in his order.

A request for declaratory judgement made by attorneys for Hooper asked Williams to rule the Curtis Act also did not to all cities within eastern Oklahoma was denied by Williams.

The Muscogee (Creek) Nation and the Cherokee Nation applauded the dismissal in statements.

"The parties behind these politically-driven cases are working to make our state less safe. The McGirt decision means more police, courts, and prosecutors working to keep our communities peaceful. Oklahomans deserve that," the Muscogee (Creek) Nation said in a released statement.

Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. said his tribe will continue to support a collaborative approach on public safety "that respect rather than attack tribal sovereignty."

Williams said in his order any additional arguments made by the city of Tulsa need to be made in a separate lawsuit filed by the Muscogee (Creek) Nation filed in November against the city regarding the prosecution of tribal members.

Tulsa argues the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Castro-Huerta v. Oklahoma gives the city concurrent jurisdiction to ticket Native Americans "separate and apart from the Curtis Act."

"That case is the proper venue for the City to raise their other matters, not here," Williams wrote in his order. "The Tenth Circuit chose not to address Castro-Huerta in its decision and this Court similarly declines to address it."

The city has asked for that lawsuit to be dismissed because the case interferes with "pending Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals proceedings where a decision is imminent" and gave three examples of cases currently pending with OCCA.

One such case involves Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt's brother, Marvin Stitt, who was ticketed for aggravated speeding in 2021 by the Tulsa Police Department. Similar to Hooper, a municipal judge denied the motion to dismiss the speeding ticket with attorneys filing an appeal with OCCA that is now awaiting decision.

The city of Tulsa in court documents has suggested it will possibly appeal any decision in any of the cases to the U.S. Supreme Court for further argument.