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Felix Clary
ICT + Tulsa World
OKMULGEE, Okla. — A dispute earlier this week over tribal sovereignty and jurisdiction at the Okmulgee County Jail resulted in a physical altercation between a jailer and the Muscogee Nation Lighthorse Police Department’s deputy chief, according to Muscogee Nation officials.
Muscogee Nation Attorney General Geri Wisner said video of the incident Monday prompted her office to file a criminal charge against the jailer.
“We understand that the Okmulgee County officials dislike federal laws that grant tribal law enforcement jurisdiction,” Wisner said during a news conference Thursday. “But those political opinions do not give Okmulgee County the right to disregard and violate laws.”
The situation started Monday when a Lighthorse police officer conducted a traffic stop after seeing a motorist driving on the wrong side of the road in a school zone. His request for assistance from the Okmulgee Police Department was denied. The motorist was not a tribal citizen.
Okmulgee Police Chief Joe Prentice told the Tulsa World he was not in the office on the day of the traffic stop. He said he was informed dispatchers relayed the Lighthorse police request, but “the shift commander advised them all units were occupied with other duties.” Prentice said there did not appear to be any kind of follow-up request from Lighthorse police.
The Lighthorse police officer received consent to search the vehicle after seeing drug paraphernalia on the passenger seat. A rubber case that reportedly contained a large amount of fentanyl fell from the driver’s waistband, so the Lighthorse police officer took the driver into custody.
Wisner said state law required the driver be taken to the Okmulgee County Jail for booking and processing.
Body-worn camera footage from the Lighthorse officer shows jail official Matthew J. Douglas refusing to take the detainee, claiming it was against the jail’s policy to accept prisoners from Lighthorse police. Some jail staff can be heard on the video saying Lighthorse officers are not “real police.”
The arrest had been made under a cross-deputization agreement with Grand River Dam Authority, which Wisner noted has law enforcement authority in counties that include Okmulgee County. However, jail staff told Lighthorse officers to leave with the detainee.
Wisner said jail staff threatened to fabricate charges against Lighthorse officers, and Douglas can be heard in the video telling the officers he would lock them in the receiving area with the detainee.
A physical altercation between Douglas and Lighthorse Deputy Chief Dennis Northcross began behind a closed door, video shows. As other Lighthorse officers tried to enter the room, a brief shoving match ensued at the door.
Wisner characterized Douglas’ actions as assault on a tribal officer and got a warrant for his arrest in tribal court. She cited the tribe’s authority to charge Douglas under a 2022 amendment to the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013.
The legislation enabled tribes to exercise criminal jurisdiction over non-Indian offenders. In 2022, Congress expanded the list of “covered crimes” to include assaulting tribal justice personnel, child violence, obstruction of justice, sexual violence, sex trafficking and stalking.
Wisner said the Muscogee Nation has already filed sexual violence cases under that provision but believes that Douglas’ case may be the tribe’s first related to assaulting tribal law enforcement.
Okmulgee County Sheriff Eddy Rice said in a statement early Thursday that jail administration duties are the purview of the Okmulgee County Criminal Justice Authority. Rice said tribal police had “blocked the roadways around the jail” Monday but that after “the situation was calmed,” the detainee was processed and tribal police left.
While the tribe has entered into dozens of cross-deputization agreements with other law enforcement agencies across eastern Oklahoma, Wisner said, talks with Okmulgee County have gone nowhere.
“Unfortunately, I would say part of the difficulty (of working with Okmulgee County law enforcement) is illustrated by this incident,” she said. “The refusal to acknowledge what the law says – even when it’s Oklahoma law – their blatant refusal makes it difficult for us to be able to do our job.”
When Lighthorse police tried to serve the warrant Wednesday at the Okmulgee County Jail, Wisner said, they were met in a nearby parking lot by staff who refused to allow tribal police to serve Douglas.
Wisner said the warrant remains outstanding after officials gave Douglas until 9 a.m. Thursday to surrender, but he elected not to turn himself in. The Muscogee Nation is seeking guidance from the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division about the matter, Wisner said.
Gov. Kevin Stitt, who has had a contentious relationship with the state’s tribes and has been outspoken about his disdain for the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in McGirt v. Oklahoma, which established tribal and federal jurisdiction in many criminal cases within much of eastern Oklahoma, issued a statement Thursday in response to the situation in Okmulgee County: “This is the direct effect of the broken system created by the McGirt decision,” he said. “Without jurisdictional clarity, we are left with a patchwork system and heightened tensions.
“I am glad cooler heads prevailed and prevented the situation from escalating to a dangerous level, but this demonstrates the need for collective action.
“In response, I am gathering stakeholders to discuss practical solutions that keep our citizens and law enforcement safe while I continue to call on Congress and the courts to address this problem.”
