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AUGUST 23, 2000

On Tuesday, the 3rd District Court of Appeals in Wisconsin denied the Mille Lacs Ojibwe Tribe jurisdiction over the custody case of a 15-year-old tribal member.

In 1999, the tribe attempted to assert jurisdiction over the teenager under the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA). But the Appeals Court said a county court was correct in keeping jurisdiction with the state instead of the tribe.

The county court said the teenager wanted to live in a foster home near the St. Croix Chippewa Reservation and took into account his best interests in not transferring jurisdiction to the Mille Lacs tribal court.

In 1992, the teenager was removed from his mother's custody due to allegations of neglect. Since then, he has been in the custody of the state and living with non-Indian foster families.

The tribe has participated in hearings involving the teenager since 1995.

Passed in 1978, ICWA was designed to prevent Indian children from being adopted out of the tribe or placed in the homes of non-Indian or non-tribal members.

Get the Decision:
Wisconsin v. Mille Lacs Band of Chippewa Indians (Wisconsin Court of Appeals. No. 99-2936)

Relevant Links:
The Indian Child Welfare Act - www.nicwa.org/policy/theact.htm
National Indian Child Welfare Association - www.nicwa.org/"
Wisconsin Court of Appeals - www.courts.state.wi.us