Supreme Court Gives , State Governments More Power , Over Native American Tribal Land.br On June 29, the Supreme Court gave br state governments the authority to br prosecute certain cases on tribal land.br On June 29, the Supreme Court gave br state governments the authority to br prosecute certain cases on tribal land.br NBC reports that the decision undermines br centuries of legal precedent by br expanding the authority of states.br Tribal leaders and law experts say the ruling br comes as a heavy blow to the sovereignty br of tribes over their own land and governance. .br Elizabeth Reese, an assistant professor at Stanford Law br School, warns the ruling could embolden state government br to further diminish tribal nations' self-governance.br The decision, she says, would force tribal citizens to rely on, “institutions that are not designed to represent us br and that have historically fought against us.".br After fighting for our own independence, br and then negotiating this shared situation br with the federal government for so long, br it’s just an erosion of our ability to br be the governments that we are, Elizabeth Reese, assistant professor br at Stanford Law School, via NBC.br After fighting for our own independence, br and then negotiating this shared situation br with the federal government for so long, br it’s just an erosion of our ability to br be the governments that we are, Elizabeth Reese, assistant professor br at Stanford Law School, via NBC.br Specifically, the ruling gives state governments the authority to prosecute cases in which a non-Native person commits a crime against a Native person on tribal land.br Specifically, the ruling gives state governments the authority to prosecute cases in which a non-Native person commits a crime against a Native person on tribal land.br The decision overturns , almost 200 years , of Supreme Court precedent. .br Where this Court once stood firm, today it wilts. Where our predecessors refused to participate in one State’s unlawful power grab at the expense of the Cherokee, br today’s Court accedes to another’s, Neil Gorsuch, Supreme Court Justice, via NBC.br Where this Court once stood firm, today it wilts.