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An 1839 assassination of a Cherokee leader and a 1999 murder case – two crimes nearly two centuries apart provide the backbone to an upcoming 2019 Supreme Court decision that will determine the fate of five tribes and nearly half the land in Oklahoma.

Patrick Murphy was convicted of murder by the state of Oklahoma in 2000.  But defense attorneys soon discovered that his conviction may have been based on a lie. Hosted by Rebecca Nagle, an Oklahoma journalist and citizen of the Cherokee Nation, this podcast will provide an in depth look at how a cut and dry murder case opened an investigation into half the land in Oklahoma and the treaty rights of five tribes. Follow along to find out what’s at stake, the Trump administration’s involvement, the larger right wing attack on tribal sovereignty and how one unique case could result in the largest restoration of tribal land in US history.

Episodes

1. The Case

The Supreme Court is about to make a decision that will determine the future of five tribes and nearly half the land in Oklahoma, and it all starts with a murder on the side of the road in 1999.

2. The Tribe

Muscogee (Creek) Nation's reservation spans 11 counties across Eastern Oklahoma. This land is now at stake, and the tribe’s legal team headed to D.C. to make its case in front of the Supreme Court.

3. The Opposition

There are some very powerful groups set against Muscogee (Creek) Nation. Who are they? What's their motivation? And what arguments are they using to win their case in Court?

4. The Treaty

A Cherokee leader is murdered in 1839 for signing a treaty with the United States, but the promise he died for was broken.

5. The Land Grab

The geography of this country was reshaped in the late 1800s and depending on who tells it, it's either a story of good intentions...or one of outright theft.

6. The Postponement

The Supreme Court punted a decision on Carpenter v. Murphy to the next term. What does this mean for the tribes?

7. Still Bleeding

Tribes are asking that the Supreme Court keep the promises that it made to them. Because what's lost when those promises are broken is more than just land.

8. The Next Battleground

A murder case sparked an investigation into the treaty rights of five tribes. But another case — a simple case about an adoption — could actually dismantle America's tribes as we know them.