Passing the Buck: The Perils of Oklahoma v. Castro-Huerta

The Supreme Court’s 2021–2022 term was historic and controversial.¹ By reverting to originalism, the Court eschewed long-established precedent to curtail abortion rights² and expand access to guns.³ However, no case broke from precedent harder than the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in Oklahoma v. Castro-Huerta.⁴

The case involved a single question: can states prosecute non-Indians who commit crimes against Indian⁵ victims on reservations?⁶ The answer to the question was clearly “no,” as Oklahoma—the state bringing the case—admitted two years prior.⁷ Notwithstanding, five Supreme Court Justices sided with Oklahoma, and in so doing, upended over two hundred years of federal Indian law.⁸