United States v. Michael L. Enas

Opinion by Judge McKEOWN; Concurrence by Judge PREGERSON.

McKEOWN, Circuit Judge:

This case sits at the intersection of two complicated bodies of law: the dual sovereignty exception to double jeopardy, and the sovereign power of Indian tribes. We must determine whether an Indian tribe and the federal government may twice prosecute a “non-member Indian”1 for the same conduct without offending the Double Jeopardy Clause. Our answer lies in the distinction between the “inherent” and “delegated” power of Indian tribes. If the tribe was acting pursuant to its inherent power when it prosecuted Enas,…