Tulsa World: One Of First Cases Overturned On Tribal Jurisdiction Grounds Results In Federal Conviction

A federal jury convicted a Muscogee Nation tribal member Thursday of a 1999 McIntosh County murder after the U.S. Supreme Court threw out his state conviction and death sentence in one of the first cases to successfully argue that the state of Oklahoma did not have jurisdiction to try the defendant because of his American Indian status.

The jury found Patrick Dwayne Murphy, 52, guilty of one count of second-degree murder, one count of murder in Indian Country in perpetuation of kidnapping and one count of kidnapping resulting in death following a three-day trial that began Tuesday.

The government did not seek the death penalty for Murphy.

Read the full story at tulsaworld.com.

This story is part of the Oklahoma Media Center’s Promised Land collaborative effort, which shows how the landmark McGirt v. Oklahoma decision will affect both tribal and non-Indigenous residents in the state.

It is a project of the Local Media Foundation with support from the Inasmuch Foundation, the Walton Family Foundation and the Democracy Fund. The print, digital and broadcast media partners include: CNHI Oklahoma, Cherokee Phoenix, Curbside Chronicle, The Frontier, Gaylord News, Griffin Communications, KFOR, KGOU, KOSU, The Lawton Constitution, Moore Monthly, Mvskoke Media, the Native American Journalists Association, NonDoc, The O’Colly, Oklahoma City Free Press, The Oklahoma Eagle, Oklahoma Gazette, The Oklahoman, Oklahoma Watch, Osage News, StateImpact Oklahoma, Tulsa World, Telemundo Oklahoma, University of Oklahoma Student Media and Verified News Network.

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