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Narragansett Tribe Sovereignty Dispute

The Narragansett Indian Tribe of Rhode Island operated a smoke shop on tribal lands selling untaxed tobacco. Rhode Island state police raided the shop under a state warrant to shut it down, which the tribe did not recognize. When the police entered tribal lands, tribespeople attempted to block the entrance but were thrown to the ground and arrested. The police confiscated the shop's inventory and profits, leading to a confrontation between state police and the gathered tribe reminiscent of civil rights clashes. The tribe's leader expected the issue would be resolved in federal court but the police raid occurred beforehand.

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Anshul Yadav
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49 views1 page

Narragansett Tribe Sovereignty Dispute

The Narragansett Indian Tribe of Rhode Island operated a smoke shop on tribal lands selling untaxed tobacco. Rhode Island state police raided the shop under a state warrant to shut it down, which the tribe did not recognize. When the police entered tribal lands, tribespeople attempted to block the entrance but were thrown to the ground and arrested. The police confiscated the shop's inventory and profits, leading to a confrontation between state police and the gathered tribe reminiscent of civil rights clashes. The tribe's leader expected the issue would be resolved in federal court but the police raid occurred beforehand.

Uploaded by

Anshul Yadav
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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FEDERAL

INDIAN

LAW-AMBIGUOUS

ABROGATION:

THE

FIRST CIRCUIT STRIPS THE NARRAGANSETT INDIAN TRIBE OF

ITs

SOVEREIGN IMMUNITY

INTRODUCTION

Chief Sachem Matthew Thomas got up and put on a shirt and


tie. 1 The Narragansett tribe leader expected to end the day in federal court, where he would confront the Rhode Island officials who
were attempting to shut down the tribe's tax-free smoke shop.2 But
when Tribal Councilman Hiawatha Brown called at one in the afternoon to say that a convoy of Rhode Island state troopers was
headed to the shop, Thomas had a feeling that the confrontation
might not wait until the tribe and the state made it to court. 3 When
the state troopers entered tribal lands under orders to shut down
the smoke shop, the Narragansett tribespeople stood their ground. 4
The police showed a state warrant, which the federally acknowledged tribe refused to recognize. 5 Tribespeople who attempted to
block the shop's entrance were thrown to the ground and handcuffed by flak-jacketed state police. The police confiscated the
smoke shop's inventory of untaxed tobacco along with the money
the Narragansett tribe had earned from sales. 6 In a scene reminiscent of the clashes of the civil rights era, the gathered people
chanted "let our Chief go," as state officers dragged bloodied men
out of the. shop.7
1. Michael Corkery, Clash Over Smoke Shop-Raid Came After Talks Broke
Down, PROVIDENCE J., July 16, 2003, at AI, available at 2003 WLNR 6912411. The
Narragansett's traditional leaders, known as sachems, are drawn from high-ranking tribal families.
2. Id.; Paul Davis & Katie Mulvaney, State, Tribe Offer Differing Views on Sovereignty Status, PROVIDENCE J., Aug. 21, 2003, at AI, available at 2003 WLNR 6794087.
3. Corkery, supra note 1; Katie Mulvaney & Paul Davis, Clash Over Smoke
Shop-R.l. Police, Narragansetts Clash, PROVIDENCE J., July 15,2003, at AI, available
at 2003 WLNR 6712314.
4. Mulvaney & Davis, supra note 3.
5. Edward Fitzpatrick & Jennifer Levitz, Indians, State Say They Couldn't Give in
on Smoke-Shop Issue, PROVIDENCE J., Aug. 22,2003, at AI, available at 2003 WLNR
6659824.
6. Mulvaney & Davis, supra note 3.
7. Id.

243

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