Criminal Convictions in U.S. Tribal Law: Collateral Consequences, Pardons, and Expungements in Indian Country

This book is the first comparative law study of collateral consequences of criminal conviction in all federally recognized Indian tribes in the lower 48 U.S. states, and the mechanisms for restoring civil rights in tribal law.

Surveying the constitutions, codes, and ordinances of tribal jurisdictions reveals a broad range of consequences - the impact of which has not been comprehensively and critically examined. Like state and federal jurisdictions, tribal law attaches thousands of legal disabilities to tribal offices, business licenses and permits, social services, and civil rights for persons with criminal convictions. This is especially true in economically important industries such as gaming and resource extraction; additionally, rapidly changing areas such as marijuana regulation and sex offender registries expand the scope still further. This book catalogues restoration of rights procedures in tribal law, to include pardons, expungements, and record sealing. Collateral consequences have proliferated in tribal law because of the limitations of tribal criminal jurisdiction, including over non-tribal members. However, tribal collateral consequences risk contributing to overcriminalization and social exclusion for persons with previous criminal convictions, especially as Native Americans are already disproportionately impacted by the U.S. criminal justice system.

This book will appeal to legal academics, scholars, and practitioners working in tribal criminal law, as well as to others with interests in Indigenous legal issues.

Andrew Novak is Instructional Associate Professor of Criminology, Law and Society at George Mason University, Virginia, USA.