The tribe had taken custody of the child to protect his cultural heritage, a step protected by state and federal law. A tribal judge ultimately reversed the custody order and returned the infant to his mother.

''It's been a couple of weeks since I started thinking through more and more about keeping him,'' Kelly Buffalo said of her son, Braven. ''As it came down for the time to go in front of the council, I decided there was no way I could send him away.''

Even though she changed her mind, Buffalo said she still is frustrated by laws that allow tribal leaders to trump what a mother wants.

Buffalo said a mother should have a right to choose, especially in a case like hers. It is unlikely her son will ever be formally enrolled in the tribe because his father is white. And under tribal tradition, women alone cannot enroll their children in the tribe, she said.

''I still think the law gives the tribal council too much power,'' Buffalo said. ''That's something that I would like to see changed and will continue to work toward.''

The Meskwaki tribe, which operates a lucrative casino in Tama, is the only federally recognized tribe in Iowa.