The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs announced on Monday that the Department of the Interior has accepted the retrocession of partial criminal jurisdiction over the Skokomish Nation from the State of Washington. The Tribe collaborated with the State of Washington and the Department to reassume jurisdiction over specific crimes within its reservation boundaries.
“Jurisdiction over criminal matters is a fundamental part of a nation’s government. Restoring this jurisdiction to the Skokomish Nation is a significant act in support of Tribal sovereignty and self-governance,” Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Bryan Newland (Bay Mills Indian Community) said. “This retrocession is part of our work under the Biden-Harris administration to give back what has been taken away from Tribes by the harmful policies of the past.”
In 1953, Congress enacted Public Law 83-280 as part of its broader Termination Policy, aimed at undermining the sovereign existence of Indian Tribes. The law transferred criminal jurisdiction over Indian people on Indian lands from the federal government to certain states. Retrocession allows a state to return jurisdiction, enabling a Tribe to assume control through self-determination and self-governance.