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A federal judge on Wednesday declined to intervene in a dispute over the legality of the Ute Tribal Court hearing a lawsuit against Utah and local law officers related to the death of a tribal member after a high-speed chase.
U.S. District Judge Bruce Jenkins said the dispute was best resolved in the courtroom of another federal judge, Tena Campbell, who had dismissed a lawsuit brought by the family of Todd R. Murray, who died after the April 1, 2007, chase of a vehicle in which he was a passenger. Or, Jenkins said, it was a matter for the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Murray's family contended that he was shot at close range by an officer, but Campbell ruled last year that evidence showed that Murray shot himself in the head and that the officer was about 100 yards away at the time.
That ruling is on appeal to the 10th Circuit, but the Murray family and the tribe have filed a similar suit in tribal court.
Jesse Trentadue, the attorney for the officers named in the federal court lawsuit, and Assistant Utah Attorney General Randy Hunter told Jenkins that the tribe was in violation of his order in another case that spelled out the procedure the Ute Tribal Court had to follow before accepting cases.
But attorney Jeffrey Rasmussen, who represents the Murray family, said a declaration from the tribal judge showed that proper procedures were followed. Trentadue also has filed a lawsuit against the Ute Indian Tribe, the tribal judge and Murray family members over the same issues. That lawsuit is pending before U.S. District Judge Dee Benson.