Native Americans Demanding Chance to Try Opioid Suits Separately
- Lumping tribes’ claims with others said to marginalize cases
- Tribes have seen five-fold increase in overdose deaths
Photographer: Antoine Antoniol/Bloomberg
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Native American tribes devastated by the U.S. opioid epidemic asked a judge set up a separate track for their lawsuits targeting makers and distributors of the painkillers for creating a public-health crisis.
Santee Sioux Nation of Nebraska, the Winnebago Tribe and others feel “marginalized’’ by having their cases lumped in with states’ opioid claims, David Domina, a lawyer for the tribes, told U.S. District Judge Daniel Polster Thursday. Polster, who has been pressing for a quick resolution of the suits, said he’d consider the request.