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Sara E. Hill

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Sara Hill
Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 2, 2024
Appointed byJoe Biden
Preceded byClaire Eagan
Attorney General of the Cherokee Nation
In office
August 29, 2019 – August 31, 2023
Appointed byChuck Hoskin Jr.
Preceded byTodd Hembree
Succeeded byChad Harsha
Secretary of Natural Resources for the Cherokee Nation
In office
October 12, 2015 – August 29, 2019
Appointed byBill John Baker
Preceded byFirst appointee
Succeeded byChad Harsha
Personal details
Born
Sara Elizabeth Hill

1977 (age 46–47)
Tahlequah, Oklahoma, U.S.
CitizenshipAmerican
Cherokee Nation
EducationNortheastern State University (BA)
University of Tulsa (JD)

Sara Elizabeth Hill (born 1977) is a Cherokee and American attorney who has served as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma since 2024. She previously served as the attorney general of the Cherokee Nation from August 2019 to August 2023 and as the tribe's secretary of natural resources between October 2015 and August 2019.

Early life and education

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Sara Elizabeth Hill was born in 1977 in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, and raised in Stigler, Oklahoma.[1][2] Hill's high school debate coach, Ed Cannaday, would go on to serve in the Oklahoma House of Representatives.[2] She graduated from Northeastern State University with a Bachelor of Arts, cum laude in 2000 and with a Juris Doctor from the University of Tulsa College of Law in 2003.[3][4]

Career

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From 2004 to 2015, Hill served as a deputy attorney general for the Cherokee Nation.[5] In December 2014, she was sworn in as a tribal special assistant U.S. attorney in the Northern District of Oklahoma's U.S. attorney's office, a position she held concurrently as deputy attorney general.[6] On October 12, 2015, Hill was appointed the Cherokee Nation's first secretary of natural resources by principal chief Bill John Baker and she served in that position until August 29, 2019.[7] She was succeeded by Chad Harsha.[8]

Cherokee Nation attorney general

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On August 29, 2019, Hill was appointed as the attorney general of the Cherokee Nation by newly elected principal chief Chuck Hoskin Jr.[8] During her tenure as attorney general the United States Supreme Court issued the landmark McGirt v. Oklahoma (2020) decision which held the Muscogee Nation reservation was never disestablished.[9] On March 11, 2021, the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals ruled in Hogner v. Oklahoma that the Cherokee Nation reservation had also never been disestablished.[10] Hill led the Cherokee Nation's effort to build up its criminal justice system after the Hogner ruling and the Nation's defense of the Indian Child Welfare Act during the Haaland v. Brackeen (2023) litigation.[11][12] In the year following the ruling, the Cherokee Nation attorney general's office went from prosecuting around 300 criminal cases to over 3,000 criminal cases.[13] Also during her tenure, the Cherokee Nation attorney general's office successfully sought the official striking of "by blood" language from Cherokee law by the Cherokee Nation Supreme Court.[14][15] Hill criticized the 2022 Oklahoma v. Castro-Huerta ruling saying "It really didn't honor the foundations of federal Indian law. It overlooked and ignored the history of the tribes."[16] In August 2023, she resigned to enter private practice.[17]

Federal judicial service

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On October 18, 2023, President Joe Biden announced his intent to nominate Hill to fill a vacancy on the United States District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma.[3] Her nomination was endorsed by Senators James Lankford and Markwayne Mullin as well as Cherokee Nation principal chief Chuck Hoskin Jr.[18][4] The National Congress of American Indians, Native American Rights Fund, and Inter-Tribal Council of the Five Civilized Tribes also supported her nomination.[19][12] The nomination was criticized by Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt, who is also a member of the Cherokee Nation.[20] On October 24, 2023, her nomination was sent to the Senate. President Biden nominated Hill to the seat vacated by Judge Claire Eagan, who assumed senior status on October 1, 2022.[21] On November 15, 2023, a hearing on her nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee.[22] During her hearing, Senators Mike Lee and Thom Tillis questioned her about tribal sovereignty and her criticism of the Castro-Huerta decision; asking whether she would recuse herself on issues of tribal sovereignty.[23] On December 7, 2023, her nomination was reported out of committee by a 14–7 vote.[24][25] On December 19, 2023, the United States Senate invoked cloture on her nomination by a 52–14 vote, with Senator Joe Manchin voting against the motion to invoke cloture.[26] Later that day, her nomination was confirmed by a 52–14 vote, with Senator Manchin voting against confirmation.[27][28] She received her judicial commission on January 2, 2024.[29] She was sworn in on January 6, 2024.[30] She became the first female Native American federal judge in Oklahoma history.[31]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees" (PDF). United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  2. ^ a b Killman, Curtis (April 12, 2024). "First Native American woman on federal bench in Oklahoma sworn in". Tulsa World. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  3. ^ a b "President Biden Names Fortieth Round of Judicial Nominees and Announces Nominees for U.S. Attorney, U.S. Marshal, and the U.S. Sentencing Commission". whitehouse.gov. October 18, 2023. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  4. ^ a b Hunter, Chad (October 18, 2023). "President nominates former Cherokee Nation AG as federal judge". Cherokee Phoenix. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  5. ^ Killman, Curtis (October 18, 2023). "Nominees for federal judgeships in Oklahoma announced". Tulsa World. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  6. ^ Jackson, Tesina (December 13, 2014). "Deputy AG sworn now special assistant U.S. attorney". Cherokee Phoenix. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  7. ^ Murphy, Jami (October 13, 2015). "Tribal Council confirms new Secretary of Natural Resources". Cherokee Phoenix. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  8. ^ a b Hunter, Chad (August 30, 2019). "Council approves Chief Hoskin's Cabinet nominees". Cherokee Phoenix. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  9. ^ Hunter, Chad (September 8, 2020). "Conviction appeals piling up following McGirt decision". Cherokee Phoenix. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  10. ^ Hunter, Chad (April 9, 2021). "Cherokee Nation sees 'tidal wave' of criminal cases". Cherokee Phoenix. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  11. ^ Casteel, Chris (October 19, 2023). "Biden to nominate former Cherokee Nation attorney general, Tulsa attorney for judgeships". The Oklahoman. Retrieved October 20, 2023.
  12. ^ a b Hoberock, Barbara (October 23, 2023). "Five tribes support nomination of Sara Hill for federal judge". Tulsa World. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
  13. ^ Hunter, Chad (March 31, 2022). "Year-old court case was milestone for reservation". Cherokee Phoenix. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  14. ^ Hunter, Chad (February 19, 2021). "Cherokee Nation attorney general asks Supreme Court to strike Constitution's 'by blood' reference". Cherokee Phoenix. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  15. ^ "Cherokee Nation Supreme Court rules 'by blood' reference be stricken from tribe's". Cherokee Phoenix. February 23, 2021. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  16. ^ Hunter, Chad (July 13, 2022). "SCOTUS hands down 'terrible' jurisdiction decision, AG says". Cherokee Phoenix. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  17. ^ Hunter, Chad (September 2, 2023). "Chief's cabinet picks confirmed". Cherokee Phoenix. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  18. ^ Thompson, Nathan (October 18, 2023). "Bartlesville Radio » News » Hill, Russell Nominated for Judicial Posts in the Northern District of Oklahoma". Bartlesville Radio. Retrieved October 18, 2023.
  19. ^ Agoyo, Acee (October 18, 2023). "Cherokee Nation attorney makes history as first Native judicial nominee in Oklahoma". Indianz.com. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  20. ^ Patterson, Matt; Brinkman, Bennett (October 20, 2023). "Frantic Friday: Drummond files St. Isidore suit; Stitt fills state board, criticizes Sara Hill nomination". NonDoc. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
  21. ^ "Nominations and Withdrawal Sent to the Senate" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: The White House. October 24, 2023.
  22. ^ "Nominations". Washington, D.C.: United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. November 14, 2023.
  23. ^ Fischler, Jacob (November 15, 2023). "U.S. Senate Republicans question Oklahoma judicial nominee on tribal sovereignty". Oklahoma Voice. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
  24. ^ "Results of Executive Business Meeting – December 7, 2023" (PDF). United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
  25. ^ Headley, Tiana. "Former Tribal Lawyer's Judicial Nomination Advances in Senate". Bloomberg Law. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  26. ^ "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture: Sara E. Hill to be United States District Judge for the Northern District of Oklahoma)". United States Senate. December 19, 2023. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  27. ^ "On the Nomination (Confirmation: Sara E. Hill, of Oklahoma, to be United States District Judge for the Northern District of Oklahoma)". United States Senate. December 19, 2023. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  28. ^ Raymond, Nate. "US Senate confirms Oklahoma judge over governor's objections". Reuters. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  29. ^ Sara E. Hill at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
  30. ^ "Notice - Appointment of Judge Sara E. Hill" (PDF) (Press release). Retrieved January 29, 2024.
  31. ^ "Former Cherokee Nation Attorney General Sara E. Hill Nominated to Federal Bench by President Biden". Native News Online. October 18, 2023. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
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Legal offices
Preceded by Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma
2024–present 		Incumbent
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