With less than a week before the November 3 hearing, lawyers in the state of Rhode Island still haven't figured out who will argue Carcieri v. Kempthorne, a land-into-trust case.

Joseph Larisa Jr., the assistant solicitor for Indian Affairs for the town of Charlestown, filed an emergency motion with the U.S. Supreme Court in hopes of ending the impasse. But the justices previously told the attorneys involved in the case to figure it out themselves.

"For the Town of Charlestown to think that the court is going to change its position on this issue now, a month later and a week before the oral argument, is sheer lunacy,” a spokesperson for Attorney General Patrick Lynch told The Providence Journal in an e-mail. “This remains one of the most important states’ rights cases to come before the U.S. Supreme Court in recent times. The Town of Charlestown, through its part-time lawyer — who has zero experience arguing before the U.S. Supreme Court — is holding the State of Rhode Island’s interests hostage.”

Lynch and Gov. Donald Carcieri (R) want Theodore B. Olson, a former Bush administration attorney, to argue the case. Olson has appeared before the court 50 times.

The emergency motion will be considered Friday, the Journal reported.

Get the Story:
Emergency motion asks high court to choose state’s lawyer (The Providence Journal 10/28)
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Supreme Court Documents:
Docket Sheet | Questions Presented | Order List

1st Circuit Decisions:
En Banc (July 20, 2007) | Panel (February 9, 2005)

Briefs and Other Documents:
Carcieri v. Kempthorne (NARF-NCAI Tribal Supreme Court Project

Relevant Laws:
Rhode Island Indian Claims Settlement Act (US Code)

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