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WEDNESDAY, MAY 1, 2002

A Black Seminole from Oklahoma whose lawsuit was dismissed by a federal judge last week plans to appeal the case.

An attorney for Sylvia Davis told The Shawnee News-Star that the U.S. District Judge Vicki Miles-LaGrange's ruling was wrong on a number of accounts. The appeal would go to the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Davis and other Seminole Freedmen, descendants of African slaves who were made members of the tribe by a post-Civil War treaty, want access to a $56 million judgment fund. The money is limited to members of the Seminole Nation as the tribe existed in 1823.

The case was dismissed because the Seminole Nation is not a party. The tribe can't be sued unless it waives sovereign immunity.

Get the Story:
Shawnee woman to appeal federal court decision on Seminole Freedmens (The Shawnee News-Star 5/1)
Tribes move to loosen ties with agency (The Daily Oklahoman 5/1)

Related Decisions:
Davis v. U.S. No. 98-6161 (10th Circuit. September 21, 1999)

Relevant Links:
Seminole Nation of Oklahoma - http://www.cowboy.net/native/seminole
Estelusti Foundation - http://www.estelusti.com

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Black Seminoles dealt setback (4/30)
Opinion: Seminole Nation always black (4/22)
A fight over funds, race (4/4)
Seminole Head Start funds OKed (2/6)
Seminole changes sought again (1/16)
Ousted Seminole leader sues tribe, BIA (12/14)
Black Seminole issue still divisive (10/29)
Suspended Seminole Chief to sue (6/27)
Seminole Chief Haney suspended (6/26)
Race part of Seminole dispute (1/29)
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Seminole vote may affect Freedmen (7/7)