New Mexico
New Mexico Supreme Court rules tribal courts have jurisdiction over casino injury cases
Originally Published: January 30, 2024 7:20 a.m.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The New Mexico Supreme Court on Jan. 23 ruled that tribal courts have jurisdiction over personal injury and property damage cases brought against Native American casinos, ending a long battle that saw pueblos and other tribes advocate for protecting sovereignty when such legal claims arise.
The decision stemmed from a 2016 lawsuit in which an employee of an electrical company claimed he was severely injured while making a delivery at Pojoaque Pueblo’s casino. The state Court of Appeals had reversed a lower court ruling that initially called for the case to be dismissed.
The tribe then asked the state Supreme Court to settle the question over jurisdiction.
In its ruling, the court pointed to previous decisions in two federal cases that effectively terminated a provision in tribal-state gambling compacts that waived sovereign immunity to allow jurisdiction to be moved from tribal court to state court for some damage claims.
One of those federal cases involved a personal injury claim involving the over-serving of alcohol at Santa Ana Pueblo’s casino. The other was a slip-and-fall lawsuit brought in state court by a visitor to the Navajo Nation’s casino in northwestern New Mexico.
Attorney Richard Hughes had filed a brief on behalf of Santa Ana and Santa Clara pueblos, with seven other pueblos signing on. He told The Associated Press on Tuesday that the ruling was significant and long overdue.
“We’ve been fighting state court jurisdiction over these cases for 20 years and so it’s the end of a long struggle to keep state courts out of determining tribal affairs,” he said.
He and others have argued that nowhere in the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act did Congress authorize state courts to exercise jurisdiction over personal injury claims.
The New Mexico Trial Lawyers Association did not immediately return a message seeking comment on the ruling.
Those who have advocated to have state courts hear personal injury cases contend that the people suing tribal gambling operations could face an unfair disadvantage in tribal court.
Some experts expect personal injury lawyers to opt for arbitration before heading to tribal court, but Hughes said tribal courts are “perfectly competent to handle cases like this in a very fair and equitable fashion.”
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Country Music Hall of Fame inductee Tanya Tucker will perform at the 2026 New Mexico State Fair, officials announced Tuesday.
Tucker will take to the stage Friday, Sept. 18, after the Chevron PRCA rodeo. The Grammy Award-winning icon has racked up 10 No. 1 country hits since her first hit, “Delta Dawn,” at age 13.
“We couldn’t be more thrilled to bring the legendary Tanya Tucker to the New Mexico State Fair,” said Dan Mourning, general manager of the New Mexico State Fair. “Tanya is one of the greatest icons in country music history and is the perfect fit for the Fair.”
Tucker has 23 Top-40 albums and 56 Top 40 singles on the Billboard country music charts. She has won two Country Music Association awards, two Academy of Country Music awards, three CMT Awards and two Grammys for Best Country Album and Best Country Song.
Tickets are set to go on sale on Friday at 10 a.m.
Here is the full 2026 New Mexico State Fair rodeo-concert lineup:
Friday, Sept. 11
Turnpike Troubadours with Chevron PRCA Xtreme Bulls
Saturday, Sept. 12
Ian Munsick with Chevron PRCA Xtreme Bulls
Wednesday, Sept. 16
Chevron PRCA Standalone Rodeo
Thursday, Sept. 17
Everclear with Chevron PRCA Rodeo
Friday, Sept. 18
Tanya Tucker with Chevron PRCA Rodeo
Saturday, Sept. 19
The Warning with Chevron PRCA Rodeo
Sunday, Sept. 20
Chevron PRCA Rodeo – Matinee
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — State investigators began searching a secluded ranch in New Mexico on Monday where financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein once entertained guests amid allegations that the property may have been used for sexual abuse and sex trafficking of young women.
The office of state Attorney General Raúl Torrez announced that the search was being done with the cooperation of the current ranch owners.
Torrez last month reopened an investigation of the ranch. New Mexico’s initial case was closed in 2019 at the request of federal prosecutors in New York, and state prosecutors say now that “revelations outlined in the previously sealed FBI files warrant further examination.”
Epstein purchased the sprawling Zorro Ranch in Stanley, New Mexico, about 30 miles (48 kilometers) south of Santa Fe, in 1993 from former Democratic Gov. Bruce King and built a hilltop mansion with a private runway.
The property was sold by Epstein’s estate in 2023 — with proceeds going toward creditors — to the family of Don Huffines, a candidate in Texas for state comptroller who won the Republican primary last week.
“The New Mexico Department of Justice appreciates the cooperation of the current property owners,” the agency said in a statement. Prosecutors “will continue to keep the public appropriately informed, support the survivors, and follow the facts wherever they lead.”
Additionally, New Mexico state legislators have established a new commission to look into past activities at the ranch.
Epstein killed himself in a Manhattan jail while awaiting trial in 2019 on charges that he sexually abused and trafficked dozens of underage girls.
Epstein never faced charges in New Mexico, but the state attorney general’s office in 2019 confirmed that it had interviewed possible victims who visited Epstein’s ranch.
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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