Mormon Judge's Recusal Not Required In Case Involving Indian Tribe
Jul 28, 2016 at 6:05 am
In Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah & Ouray Reservation, Utah v. State of Utah, (D UT, July 25, 2016), a Utah federal district court rejected the contention that a federal judge's membership in the Mormon Church should be a basis for requiring recusal in cases involving Indians or Indian tribes. To support the claim, the Ute Tribe cited a passage in Mormon scripture regarding a curse on the Lamanites, which some identify as American Indians. In the long-running case involving the extent of tribal court jurisdiction, the court said
plaintiff's argument is conclusively foreclosed by the Tenth Circuit's unequivocal holding that membership in and support of "the Mormon Church would never be enough to disqualify" a judge.
The court also refused to disqualify the judge on various other grounds as well. Fox 13 reports on the decision.
Feed:
