The Oklahoma Supreme Court has unanimously rejected Governor Kevin Stitt's attempt to strike down a legal opinion protecting the rights of tribal members to hunt and fish on their reservations.
The ruling, issued on March 23, 2026, upholds Attorney General Gentner Drummond’s binding opinion that federal law prevents the state from arresting or prosecuting tribal citizens for these activities on native lands.
The dispute centered on AG Opinion 2025-19, which Drummond issued in December after concluding that state enforcement actions against tribal members were unlawful and harmful to intergovernmental relationships. Governor Stitt and the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation (ODWC) had petitioned the state's highest court to intervene, but every justice refused that request.
