The Nation - News from July 21, 1988

Navajo judges and lawyers boycotted a U.S. Civil Rights Commission hearing in Flagstaff, Ariz., contending that commission subpoenas illegally infringed on tribal sovereignty. A commission subcommittee is holding hearings to determine if federal courts should be allowed to enforce civil rights laws on Indian reservations. The session was to examine what impact a dispute between the current and former heads of the tribe is having on the Navajo judiciary. The commission lacked authority to even inquire about tribal court enforcement of the federal Indian Civil Rights Act because a 1978 U.S. Supreme Court decision gives tribal courts final say on the law, said David Nash, an attorney for the tribe.