Professor Goldberg Discusses Opening of San Manuel Band of Mission Indians Tribal Court in Los Angeles Times and Press-Enterprise Articles

October 24, 2009 -- Professor Carole Goldberg discussed the opening of a new tribal court of the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians in Los Angeles Times and Riverside Press-Enterprise articles.

The courts offer a way for California Indians to catch up with the judicial practices of tribes outside the state, said Carole Goldberg, a UCLA law professor and a tribal judge herself.

"Fifteen years ago, I could name only one tribal court within the state, and now there are over a dozen," she said. "It's a way of reinforcing the legitimacy of tribal governments both internally and in the eyes of outsiders."

To read the entire Los Angeles Times article, click here.

The establishment of tribal courts in California "Is definitely growing," said Carole Goldberg, who directs UCLA's Joint Degree Program in Law and Native American Studies. Goldberg is a Justice of the Hualapai Court of Appeals.

The Intertribal Court for Southern California handles judicial matters for about 12 various tribes, mostly based in San Diego County.

"If you had asked me this question 10 years ago, the only tribal court I could have named was the Hoopa Valley Tribe that was exclusively in California, and then I would have been at a loss," she said. "So this is a big change. It's not a radical change, it is bringing California tribes more in line with other tribes in the country."

To read the entire Press-Enterprise article, click here.

Professor Goldberg is also quoted in an Indian Country Today article on awards from the Department of Justice to improve three reservation-based domestic violence programs.

Carole Goldberg, a tribal law professor at the UCLA School of Law, elaborated on that loophole, saying the 1978 Supreme Court decision found that tribes don’t have criminal jurisdiction over non-Indians.

She said federal policy to correct the Oliphant decision is desperately needed to reduce reservation violence.

To read the entire article, click here.