The Cayuga Nation scored two recent legal victories.
According to the Cayuga Nation News, the US District Court for the District of Columbia ruled last week that the FBI’s denial of a request for access to the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) was “arbitrary and capricious” and ordered the FBI to reconsider. The NCIC is a database of missing persons and criminal information, designed for the rapid exchange of information between law enforcement agencies.
“As a legal, recognized, and lawfully established law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over lands and matters on the Cayuga Nation’s Reservation, the Cayuga Nation Police Department is entitled to access these criminal databases,” said Clint Halftown, the Cayuga Nation’s leader and federal representative. “As we continue to expand our law enforcement department, having the ability to communicate with other departments and obtain critical information from these databases will help the CNPD maintain peace and safety within the boundaries of the Cayuga Nation reservation.” A Cayuga Nation faction disputes Halftown’s designation as federal representative.
A US District Court judge ruled in favor of the Cayugas in a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) case.
The court ruled that the search by the Department of Interior for records requested by the Nation was “inadequate,” remanding the case back to Interior for further action. Furthermore, the Department of Interior must disclose the content of a number of redacted sections in documents it produced in response to the FOIA request. “We are pleased the Court has determined that we are entitled to this information under the Freedom of Information Act and we look forward to reviewing it as soon as the agency complies with the Court’s order,” the Cayuga Nation Council said.
In 2020, the Nation made a FOIA request for records pertaining to a visit by two federal Bureau of Indian Affairs employees to the Nation in March, 2020, as well as records pertaining to the denial of access to the NCIC.
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