Bird

Glacier Electric Cooperative, Inc. (“the Co-op”) appeals the district court’s judgment declaring that a judgment for compensatory and punitive damages rendered in the Blackfeet Tribal Court (“tribal court”) is recognizable and enforceable in federal court. We must decide whether a district court may give comity to a tribal court judgment, for purposes of recognition and enforcement, where the closing argument of the successful plaintiff in tribal court included numerous statements encouraging ethnic and racial bias of an all tribal member jury against a corporate defendant that was owned and controlled by persons who were not tribal members. We conclude that the district court erred in giving comity' to recognize and enforce the tribal court judgment here because, in view of the closing argument, the tribal court proceedings offended due process. 2 *1139 We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and we reverse the judgment of the district court.

FACTS & PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

Appellees Ron Bird and Herb Gilham are enrolled members of the Blackfeet Tribe. In 1991, Bird and Gilham, along with Appellee Scott Sherburne, purchased Glacier Construction, Inc., a Montana corporation…