''United States v. Rogers'', 45 U.S. (4 How.) 567 (1846), was a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States holding that a white man, adopted into an Indian tribe, does not become exempt from the enforcement of the laws prohibiting murder.

Background

William S. Rogers, a white man, was indicted for the murder of Jacob Nicholson, another white man, by the grand jury for the Circuit Court of the United States for the District of Arkansas. The murder took place in the

Indian Territory The Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the United States Government for the relocation of Native Americans who held aboriginal title to their land as a sovereign ...

. Rogers claimed that he had been adopted into the tribe since his marriage to a Native American (Indian) woman and that he was now part of the

Cherokee Tribe The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, th ...

. He claimed that Nicholson had also been adopted into the tribe and was a Cherokee. Rogers claimed that as an Indian (by adoption), the United States did not have jurisdiction to try him for the murder of another Indian (also by adoption).''United States v. Rogers'',

Opinion of the Court

Chief Justice

Roger B. Taney Roger Brooke Taney (; March 17, 1777 – October 12, 1864) was the fifth chief justice of the United States, holding that office from 1836 until his death in 1864. Although an opponent of slavery, believing it to be an evil practice, Taney belie ...

delivered the opinion of the court. Taney noted that while the Cherokee nation and their treaties with the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

did have bearing, Rogers was a white man and a citizen of the United States. Whatever obligations and responsibilities that he incurred by his adoption into the tribe did not negate his obligations and responsibilities to the United States. Rogers was still a

U.S. citizen Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Constituti ...

and subject to federal laws.

References

External links

* 1846 in United States case law United States Supreme Court cases United States Supreme Court cases of the Taney Court United States Native American criminal jurisdiction case law Criminal cases in the Taney Court Native American history of Arkansas {{SCOTUS-case-stub