Oklahoma court reinstates sentence in Castro-Huerta case

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – An Oklahoma court has reinstated the conviction and sentence of a man from Tulsa whose case led to a U.S. Supreme Court decision on tribal jurisdiction.

The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals on Thursday reinstated the child-abuse conviction and 35-year prison sentence of Victor Castro-Huerta.

The court had vacated the 37-year-old Castro-Huerta’s conviction and sentence after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that the state lacked criminal jurisdiction in Indian Country in cases involving tribal citizens.

Castro-Huerta is not a Native American, but his victim was.

In a separate decision earlier this year, the nation’s high court ruled the state can prosecute non-Native Americans for crimes on tribal land.