Cheyenne River Sioux tribal chairman insists COVID-19 checkpoints on reservation are legal

May 14, 2020

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) – The head of a Native American tribe says the tribe won’t comply with South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem’s demand to remove coronavirus checkpoints it set up on federal and state highways that run through its reservation.

The Republican governor says the checkpoints are illegal and that she asked the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and Oglala Sioux Tribe to restrict them to tribal roads only.

Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe chairman Harold Frazier sent a letter to Noem saying his tribe would consider her points. But he made clear to The Associated Press that he believes the tribe is within its rights to operate checkpoints anywhere on its reservation.

The Oglala Sioux Tribe didn’t reply to a request for comment.