Yakama tribe to get authority for some court cases

YAKIMA, Wash. Some civil and criminal cases involving members of the Yakama Nation will be returned to the tribe's jurisdiction, after being handled for decades by the state.

The federal Bureau of Indian Affairs on Monday granted the tribe's petition for what is called "retrocession."

Retrocession removes state jurisdiction over tribal members in certain cases but does not give the tribe any new jurisdiction over nonmembers. It will affect cases such as car crashes, domestic violence calls and truancy complaints.

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