Indianz.Com. In Print.
URL: http://www.indianz.com/News/2005/010428.asp

Utah court tries to figure out who is legally Indian
Thursday, September 22, 2005

The Utah Court of Appeals heard oral arguments on Wednesday in a case testing who is legally Indian in the state.

Rick Reber, 53, and his son Colton, 16, are mixed-blood Uintas. They say their Indian status entitles them to hunt on Indian land without a state permit.

Not everyone agrees the Rebers are Indian. A state attorney said people with less than 1/16 Indian blood are usually not considered Indian. The Ute Tribe says the Uintas and other mixed-blood Utes were terminated.

Reber says the case is about discrimination. "We are light complected, a lot of us. A lot of us are dark, and that's just prejudice as far as I'm concerned," he told KSL-TV.

Get the Story:
Case Looks at Benefits of 'Mixed-Blood' Indians (KSL-TV 9/21)

Related Stories:
Court to hear terminated Ute hunting rights case (09/08)
Federal courts try to decide who is legally Indian (08/24)
Unrecognized tribe loses aboriginal rights case (1/27)
Termination policy still affects Utah tribes (8/7)
Non-recognized tribe wins round in suit (4/16)
Utah says tribe not real (11/8)

Copyright © 2000-2005 Indianz.Com