The Tohono O'odham Nation has taken the Department of Homeland Security to federal court, asking a judge in Washington, D.C., to slam the brakes on a double-layer border wall that would slice across roughly 62 miles of the tribe’s reservation in southern Arizona. In a complaint filed Tuesday, tribal leaders say the project would blast mountain peaks, carve miles of access roads and permanently scar ancestral lands and burial sites. They describe the lawsuit as a last resort after learning the department was moving quickly toward awarding contracts this month.
The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, argues that the Homeland Security secretary does not have the legal authority to unilaterally "diminish" reservation boundaries and order construction on tribal lands, according to Cronkite News. Tohono O'odham Chairman Verlon Jose said the Nation tried to work with DHS but ultimately felt compelled to sue to protect its land, culture and rights, the outlet reported.
Nation Points To Long Cooperation And Tech-Heavy Policing
In its court filing, the Nation lays out decades of what it calls good-faith cooperation with federal authorities. It notes that tribal leaders authorized an on-reservation federal office in 1974, signed off on vehicle barriers and a patrol road in 2006, and approved leases in 2012 for ten 160-foot integrated surveillance towers. The complaint also highlights the work of tribal law enforcement, including the Shadow Wolves tactical unit, and points to roughly $3 million a year in tribal spending that the Nation says has helped drive apprehensions on the reservation down sharply, according to the filing posted by the Tohono O'odham Nation.
Contracting Clock Ticks After Ancient Geoglyph Damaged
Tribal leaders say their alarm spiked after an April incident in which federal contractors "inadvertently disturbed" the Las Playas intaglio, a fish-shaped geoglyph believed to be about 1,000 years old. They cite that as a warning shot that rapid contracting and bulldozing could further damage irreplaceable cultural sites that tribes have repeatedly asked crews to avoid, according to The Associated Press.
DHS Stresses Respect For Tribes But Keeps Wall On Track
The Department of Homeland Security issued a brief response pointing to past remarks from Secretary Markwayne Mullin, a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, who has said he "respects tribal sovereignty" and that DHS will coordinate with stakeholders, Cronkite News reported. The statement did not include any promise to pull back current solicitations or pause planning as officials move toward choosing a contractor.
Injunction Bid Puts Wall Plan On A Fast Legal Track
On Wednesday, the Nation followed up with a motion for a preliminary injunction asking the D.C. court to stop any steps toward construction and requesting a hearing within 21 days, arguing that defendants are "moving swiftly" to award contracts. The Nation is asking the judge to bar both contract awards and physical work on the ground while the case plays out, according to the motion filed by the Tohono O'odham Nation.
The lawsuit puts tribal sovereignty and the administration's push for new miles of border barrier on a collision course and on a tight timeline. A D.C. judge's ruling in the coming weeks will likely decide whether wall crews roll onto Tohono O'odham land this summer or whether the project hits a legal wall instead.
