Carrying on Indian Reservations

[Steve K]

Does anyone have experience carrying on Tribal Lands? My wife and I are going to the National Parks in Wyoming and Montana this summer. I'm covered to carry under LEOSA but I've read the Tribal Police have rules that differ from Federal Law.

 

[kthom]

Best and safest policy is "Don't carry on the Rez!" Any Rez ...

 

[badge]

They are a law unto themselves. Don't do it.

 

[Kodiakco]

Ask a Lawyer: Tribal Lands and Guns

Sent from my SM-T377V using Tapatalk

 

[flintsghost]

Since you are well enough informed to ask, you may already know that Reservations are sovereign land and as such are like being in a different country. Tribal police and the FBI are the enforcement agencies. I don't think that you will get good info from anyone except the specific reservation LEO's themselves. If you know where you will be call those particular agencies and ask the question to them. Lawyers will just be guessing unless they actually had a case in question on the specific reservations you are interested in. Each one will probably be different.
Your LEO permit under HR218 won't apply since you will be entering sovereign domains.

 

[bigwheelzip]

Apparently the local Cherokee are OK with carry.



An acquaintance who was an '89 graduate from Harvard Law, was made chief of the Prairie Dwelling Lakota, and worked as assistant attorney general for the Cheyenne River Sioux and then chief justice of the Oglala Sioux.
He harbored a strong animosity toward non-natives, and I'd hate to provoke a confrontation that came before him. I'd keep my firearms locked in the car if your unsure.

Otherwise, have a great trip through that spectacular scenery.

 

[BearBio]

I've been stopped on the Yakama Rez with no problems BUT I was on the State Highway.

I would check if I was going anywhere else.

 

[italiansport]

I have elk hunted on the Apache reservation here in Arizona and of course you can carry firearms while doing so.However; I would NOT recommend carrying firearms at any other time.
I live right next to a reservation here in the Phoenix area and if you are caught with a firearm by the tribal police you'll likely be going to jail.
Jim

 

[two-bit cowboy]

I don't know the authenticity of this, but it's the best I could find.

http://handgunlaw.us/documents/tribal_law_ccw.pdf

 

[BE Mike]

It looks like the OP really opened a big can of worms. After reading some of the information, I wouldn't want to be caught on a reservation with a gun. I think I'll find other places to go and things to do off the reservation.

 

[357larry]

This is a real gray area that has not been fully tested as far as I know. Yes, reservations are their own little worlds with their own laws. That being said, the reservation I work on has their own law and order code and their own courts. However, it has been determined here that tribal law can not be enforced on non-Indians. I'm not sure how our current tribal council feels about this subject. Our previous tribal chairman had made the comments that he would have anyone carrying, whether you had a ccw or not, arrested for violation of tribal law. Now, we have an agreement that tribal police can arrest people for violations of State and local laws but they would go through the State court system. The State court system can not enforce tribal law on anybody. I once asked the county prosecutor about this. They told me that if the tribe brought a case to them where a non-indian was arrested for carrying, they would hand them their weapon back and tell them to have a good day, case dismissed for lack of jurisdiction.
Not sure how this would work out elsewhere.

 

[Rubone]

I live next to a tribe here in NM that is very conservative. They do not allow non tribal members on their lands other than a few areas. And firearms laws on the Rez are strictly enforced. If you have it and they find it they will take it from you. And they won't give it back. Pueblo laws are differtn from Apache laws (Apaches love to get folks on their lands to hunt/fish/camp, as those are income sources for them). The Navajo are different again. Trveliing on a State or US highway they honor those laws as they have agreements for lease of those rights-of-way, once on tribal specific lands their laws are in effect.

 

[427mach1]

I did a prairie dog hunt on the Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation in South Dakota last summer. Before I started driving there, I called the tribal police and asked the captain if they honored concealed carry permits from out of state residents. I was surprised when he said they honor all permits that South Dakota recognizes. He explained that they use a nearby county sheriff (non-tribal) to process all their permit requests.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

Just like Rubone reported, it varies fron tribe to tribe.
And just about anytime you venture off the main highways, you will wind up on Tribal Land in NW NM and N AZ.
Like your going to the Bisti Badlands or Monument Valley.
The public land is often mixed with Tribal Land. That's called Checkerboard.
So enjoy your trip and leave your guns locked in your vehicle.

 

[Steve K]

Thanks for the great information. It looks like I have some more researching to do. We'll be going to Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument, Yellow Stone NP, and Grand Teton NP. It appears the safest and most responsible thing to do is keep the firearm locked in the same case I use on the airline when in doubt.

 

[Tom Kent]

I just read this post and found it most interesting. I plan to visit the battle sites on the Crow Reservation in the Little Big Horn area this year. Since I will be flying out and renting a car, I think I will leave my guns at home. This was all good information.

 

[spad124]

I live next to a tribe here in NM that is very conservative. They do not allow non tribal members on their lands other than a few areas. And firearms laws on the Rez are strictly enforced. If you have it and they find it they will take it from you. And they won't give it back. Pueblo laws are differtn from Apache laws (Apaches love to get folks on their lands to hunt/fish/camp, as those are income sources for them). The Navajo are different again. Trveliing on a State or US highway they honor those laws as they have agreements for lease of those rights-of-way, once on tribal specific lands their laws are in effect.

A few years ago our company had some projects on Tribal Lands for a Nation and also on US highways crossing through a Nation's Tribal Lands. I agree with Rubone that all Nations are different and their laws differ. In addition, any Nation may change its interpretation of its own law without notice.

 

[PeterDE]

I have been there and if you come from the north (from Montana) south on I-25 you pass through the Crow Reservation. If you get off the freeway you are on the reservation. The Battlefield is not on the reservation though. However, I agree. Lock the gun in the trunk. I live next door to the Nisqually Reservation. They have their own laws.If I want to fish there I have to get a permit from them. You can pass through but if you stop at the Redwind Casino, you are on the reservation. I don't know if they have a reciprocal agreement with the state or county but why risk it? Same applies elsewhere. Either call ahead and find out or lock the gun in the trunk.

 

[Alk8944]

Often you can simply "Google" the specific tribal government you are concerned about. Generally their tribal laws, including the criminal code, will be linked from that web-site and you can read them. The ones I have done this with have been in simple, plain English and clearly understood.

 

[shinbone]

I have had bad experiences with tribal police when living in New Mexico. Even if the tribal chief of police issued me a letter saying it is okay to carry, I still wouldn't do it.