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Federal Court Rules Poarch Creek Indians Can Operate Their Own Water System
April 8, 2009
The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the Poarch Band of Creek Indians can operate their own water system.
The tribe was sued by the Freemanville Water System, a rural water authority that operates a water system that supplies various parts of Escambia County around the tribe’s territory.
Having decided that supplying its own water would be the best way to meet its needs, the Poarch Band began developing its own water facilities in the spring of 2007. To ensure that it has what it terms a “dependable and economic source of water for residential and commercial use on tribal lands,” the Poarch Band wants to construct a distribution facility that would deliver water to all of those lands.
Because its tribal lands are not all contiguous, some of the water system’s infrastructure will be situated on non-tribal land within Freemanville’s service area.
Freemanville filed a federal lawsuit in September 2007 asserting that the Poarch Band’s “planned construction of a water system on or between tribal lands will curtail or limit Freemanville’s service” in violation of a 1961 law that governs water authorities that are funded with federal loans.
The Poarch Band filed a motion to dismiss asserting that the district court lacked jurisdiction due to tribal sovereign immunity.
The federal district court sided with the tribe, agreeing that tribe’s sovereign immunity extended even to the water lines running on non-tribal land. The Supreme Court has “sustained tribal immunity from suit without drawing a distinction based on where the tribal activities occurred,” according to court documents in the suit.
“Being bound to follow the Supreme Court’s decision, we cannot draw a distinction based on where the tribal activity of providing water service to all of its lands occurs,” the court concluded.
Comments
3 Responses to “Federal Court Rules Poarch Creek Indians Can Operate Their Own Water System”
Native Americans should be afforded all this and more! Anglo-Americans did them so dirty when they were having THEIR country invaded. The first case of germ warfare was against the native americans. I am a white male and I think that we as a nation will never do enough to repay these proud people.
Gambling is illegal in Florida also except dog track racing, Oh and except the Lottery. If the state gets a cut it’s legal otherwise it’s illegal. Follow the money or power. Indians have sovereignty. Look out west in Arizona to see what happens.
“tribal sovereign immunity”, call it what u like, but they get anything they want. if its a business they want, and there is already one in the area, u either give them 60% of your business, or they start there own, and ur completely out. dont take my word for it, ask anyone around atmore. gambling is illegal, except at the indian casino, right?