United States of America, Plaintiff-Appellee/cross-Appellant v. Santo Arrieta, Defendant-Appellant/ Cross-Appellee

McCONNELL, Circuit Judge.

The conviction in this case turns on whether a road maintained by Sante Fe County, New Mexico, lying between two parcels of land owned by non-Indians but within the exterior boundaries of the Poj-oaque Pueblo, where the Pueblo’s title has not been extinguished by Congress, is “I n-dian country” for purpose of the exercise of federal criminal jurisdiction.

I. Factual and Procedural Background

As a result of an altercation in January 2000, a federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment against Defendant-Appellant Santo Arrieta 1 for committing an assault against an…