Government

TC

Tribal Council

From left to right front row – Nicci Lehto (Secretary), Shelley Buck (President), Lucy Taylor (Vice President)

From left to right back row – Melanie Urich (Asst. Secretary/Treasurer), Johnny Johnson (Treasurer)

The Prairie Island Mdewakanton Dakota Tribe holds an election every two years for positions on Tribal Council. The five-member Tribal Council maintain their positions for a two-year term. It is respectful of Mdewakanton Dakota culture to follow the proper protocol when looking to contact Tribal Council members.
All inquiries should be directed through Tribal Council’s Executive Assistant:

Kerrie Henderson 651-267-4062 kerrie.henderson@piic.org

*Tribal Members should contact Tribal Council Secretary Nicci Lehto at nicci.lehto@piic.org with inquiries.

Tribal & State Courts

Minnesota state courts have been fairly deferential toward Tribal courts and have even adopted a state law abstention doctrine for certain disputes that arise in Indian country. As the Minnesota Supreme Court indicated in Gavle v. Little Six, Inc., 555 N.W.2d 284 (Minn. 1996), abstention by a state court is appropriate when the exercise of state court jurisdiction would “undermine the authority of the tribal courts over Reservation affairs” or “infringe on the right of Indians to govern themselves.” A Tribe may also wish to assert aggressive jurisdiction over domestic relations matters especially involving its children both on and off the reservation that may implicate the Indian Child Welfare Act. Although tribal courts lack criminal jurisdiction over non-Indians the federal courts have recognized that tribal courts retain extensive authority to remove non-Indians from their territories.

Tribal Court

All correspondence for the Tribal Court should be sent to:

Prairie Island Tribal Court 5636 Sturgeon Lake Road Welch, Minnesota 55089 Fax: 651-267-4008

The Court consists of a Chief Judge, an Appellate Court, a Clerk of Court, Guardian ad Litem, and a Probation Officer. According to the Judicial Code of the Prairie Island Indian Community there are no Ex Parte communications allowed. If you have any questions or communications for the Court they should be directed to:

Clerk of Court Deb English 651-385-4161 deb.english@piic.org

Tribal Court Forms

Family Court Forms

 

General Court Forms

 

Judgment Creditors Court Forms

 

Legal Representation Court Forms