Projo 7 to 7 News Blog

WASHINGTON D.C. -- The U.S. Supreme Court today will hear the state's appeal on whether 31 acres of Indian tribal land in Charlestown can be taken into trust.

Trust status would free the land from most state and local laws and place it under federal and tribal control, something Rhode Island and Charlestown leaders fear would open the door to a casino or other venture free from state oversight.

The state and Charlestown have argued the federal government cannot take land into trust for tribes recognized after the 1934 Indian Reorganization Act, unless Congress specifically authorized it. The Narragansetts became a federally recognized tribe in 1983.

Former U.S. Solicitor General Theodore B. Olson, the lawyer who successfully argued the 2000 case that put President George W. Bush in the White House, is scheduled to argue the case for the state at 1 p.m.

-- With reports from Journal staff writers Randal Edgar and Katie Mulvaney

From our archives: 7.20.07: Court sides with Narragansetts in key ruling on land

Read the First Circut Court of Appeals' 80-page ruling on this case

 Tags  Charlestown Narragansett Indians RI Supreme Court

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