United States v. Mary Dann Carrie Dann, United States of America v. Mary Dann Carrie Dann

This case is before us once again, this time in the aftermath of a remand from the Supreme Court in United States v. Dann, 470 U.S. 39 , 105 S.Ct. 1058 , 84 L.Ed.2d 28 (1985). Because the parties strongly disagree over which issues remain open for our decision, we must describe, as briefly as we can, what has gone before. It is not a short story.

History of the Litigation

This litigation began in 1974, when the United States filed a complaint against Mary and Carrie Dann alleging that they had trespassed on public lands by grazing their cattle there without a permit from the Bureau of Land Management. The government sought an injunction and damages. The Danns defended on the ground that they were members of the Western Shoshone Tribe of Indians, and that the Western Shoshone held aboriginal title to the land in question.

The government responded with two contentions: (1) that the aboriginal title of the Western Shoshone had been extinguished, and (2) that the extinguishment had been conclusively established in proceedings before the Indian Claims Commission. The district court accepted the second contention and granted judgment for the government. On appeal, we reversed. United…