OKLAHOMA CITY (Dec. 18, 2025) – Attorney General Gentner Drummond released today a binding legal opinion declaring that federal law prohibits Oklahoma from prosecuting tribal members who hunt and fish on their own reservations. The opinion stands firm against Gov. Stitt's directive to arrest and charge Native Americans exercising their long-held rights.
The formal opinion, requested by Rep. Chris Kannady, confirms what Drummond has repeatedly told Gov. Stitt and the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation (ODWC): their enforcement policy is unlawful, wasteful and damaging to the State's relationships with tribal nations.
"The supremacy of federal law dictates that it preempts application of the Oklahoma Wildlife Code to Members and Nonmember Indians hunting and fishing on the Nations' reservations," Drummond wrote. "Tribal citizens should not be deprived of their long-held rights while litigation proceeds.”
The Chickasaw, Cherokee and Choctaw Nations filed a federal lawsuit last month challenging the state's enforcement actions, and while the Attorney General typically declines to issue an opinion when a lawsuit on the same topic is pending, Drummond said the extraordinary circumstances here warranted an exception. He also noted that issuing guidance now reduces the State’s potential liability exposure.
Much of the opinion is based on the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark decision in New Mexico v. Mescalero Apache Tribe, which held that state wildlife laws cannot be enforced where tribes have established comprehensive wildlife management programs. The Cherokee, Chickasaw and Choctaw Nations all have extensive tribal wildlife codes, including licensing requirements, seasons and bag limits.
"The Nations' codes address the same conservation objectives the State pursues, including species management, habitat protection, and sustainable harvest levels," Drummond wrote.
The opinion also rebuts claims that tribal members would be permitted to engage in illegal hunting practices such as “spotlighting.” Drummond called this “demonstrably false,” noting that all three Nations’ codes explicitly ban such practices. The opinion does not affect the State’s authority over non-Indians.
The opinion emphasizes that the tribes have worked collaboratively with ODWC for years, sharing harvest data and maintaining agreements that allow state game wardens to enforce tribal codes.
“The tribes and ODWC have built a successful partnership over many years that serves the conservation interests of all Oklahomans,” Drummond said. “We should be strengthening this collaboration, not allowing political agendas to undermine decades of cooperative wildlife management. Oklahomans deserve elected officials who respect the law and these longstanding working relationships.”
The opinion is binding on state and local officials unless it is overturned by a court.
