But a new opinion issued Tuesday by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals leaves open the question of where exactly those traditional fishing grounds are.“This is something that we’ve been fighting for a long time, so we are extremely pleased to know that the Ninth Circuit so strongly supported our fishing rights,” Smith said in a phone interview from Juneau.
Metlakatla appealed to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which ruled in favor of the tribe last year. The court said Congress guaranteed Metlakatla’s tribal members the right to fish in their traditional waters despite the state’s limited entry program, which limits the number of vessels targeting particular species of fish.
Smith says the tribe has records of its members bringing fish from as far as the Aleutian Chain. But he acknowledges that the tribe’s fishermen largely harvested from waters within a day’s travel of the reserve at the southeastern tip of the state. In its new order, the court also denied a request from the state of Alaska to reconsider its decision or put it before a larger Ninth Circuit panel.
Law Law Latest News, Law Law Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Source: Slate - 🏆 716. / 51 Read more »