Why Indian Reservations Won't Be Marijuana Wonderlands Anytime Soon

[Jesus Malverde]

The Department of Justice announced last week it would no longer enforce federal marijuana laws on Native lands, which theoretically opened the door for tribes to pass the same sort of progressive pot legislation that some states have. But some are asking why the DOJ took that step when it's not clear that the tribes themselves want to legalize the stuff.

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Located four hours north of Minneapolis deep in Minnesota's northwoods, Bemidji is a regional hub for three Indian reservations—White Earth, Leech Lake, and Red Lake. All are bands of Ojibwe, but only Red Lake is a closed reservation—meaning the tribe has increased autonomy.

Red Lake's closed status is important to note because Minnesota, like several other states with large Native populations, operates under Public Law 280. The act means the state—not individual tribes—has prosecutorial jurisdiction over felonies, including marijuana possession (past a certain threshold) and distribution. So just because the feds aren't going to enforce pot laws doesn't mean every police officer from Minnesota's Bureau of Criminal Apprehension down to Bemidji beat cops won't throw you in jail for holding.

Then, even if you're an enrolled member of a tribe, you'll likely be indicted for possessing whatever amount of weed you have on you. And, like other minorities, "the rate at which Natives are arrested compared to their white peers is higher, the rate at which they're sentenced is higher, and the length of those sentences is longer, as well," according to Treuer. These facts of life, combined with the power of Public Law 280, essentially make the DOJ announcement an illusion in his eyes.

"I think at Red Lake or Bois Forte, or any reservation where Public Law 280 is not in effect, you get a little bit of that gray area. But most of those tribes have some kind of drug code where [possession] would be illegal," he told me. "It does make the Justice Department statement kind of confusing, but I don't think this is going to create a major paradigm shift."

http://www.vice.com/read/why-indian-reservations-wont-be-marijuana-wonderlands-any-time-soon-1218

Earlier: WOW.....Native American reservations now free to legalize marijuana

[Downwinder]

1. The Story Of The Oglala Lakota Nation’s Efforts To Grow Hemp

http://www.theweedblog.com/the-story-of-the-oglala-lakota-nations-efforts-to-grow-hemp/