Oak Flat Litigation: Eleven Judges call for Supreme Court to Protect Oak Flat
By Wendsler Nosie, Sr., Apache Stronghold, Censored News, September 29, 2026
The Ninth Circuit today declined to rehear three lawsuits seeking to protect Oak Flat. While this is disappointing news, we are heartened that eleven judges joined opinions criticizing the court’s decision as a “tragic error” and calling for the Supreme Court to step in. Thus, the fight to protect Oak Flat is far from over. It is coming again to the Supreme Court.
Judge Graber, writing on behalf of ten judges, put it simply: “We were wrong.” She said “everyone knew that this second round of litigation was inevitable,” and the courts should act now: “This is our last chance to prevent the irreversible desecration of a place, of a religion, and of a people.”
Judge Bumatay criticized the Court’s “badly fractured decision” and emphasized that “[t]he importance of Oak Flat to the Western Apache cannot be overstated.”
Chief Judge Murguia called the Court’s decision a “tragic error” and warned that Oak Flat would be destroyed “[u]nless the Supreme Court steps in.”
The plaintiffs in these cases—including the San Carlos Apache Tribe, the Arizona Mining Reform Coalition, and seven courageous Apache girls and women—now have the opportunity to appeal to the Supreme Court. Our prayers will be with them as they do.
Apache Stronghold’s own case remains in federal district court in Phoenix. The government and Resolution Copper have asked the court to dismiss our case, but we have asked the court to let the case continue so we can prove that the destruction of Oak Flat is illegal. We are still waiting for the district court to rule. Whatever the outcome, we will continue using every legal avenue available to protect Oak Flat.
The Ninth Circuit today declined to rehear three lawsuits seeking to protect Oak Flat. While this is disappointing news, we are heartened that eleven judges joined opinions criticizing the court’s decision as a “tragic error” and calling for the Supreme Court to step in. Thus, the fight to protect Oak Flat is far from over. It is coming again to the Supreme Court.
Judge Graber, writing on behalf of ten judges, put it simply: “We were wrong.” She said “everyone knew that this second round of litigation was inevitable,” and the courts should act now: “This is our last chance to prevent the irreversible desecration of a place, of a religion, and of a people.”
Judge Bumatay criticized the Court’s “badly fractured decision” and emphasized that “[t]he importance of Oak Flat to the Western Apache cannot be overstated.”
Chief Judge Murguia called the Court’s decision a “tragic error” and warned that Oak Flat would be destroyed “[u]nless the Supreme Court steps in.”
The plaintiffs in these cases—including the San Carlos Apache Tribe, the Arizona Mining Reform Coalition, and seven courageous Apache girls and women—now have the opportunity to appeal to the Supreme Court. Our prayers will be with them as they do.
Apache Stronghold’s own case remains in federal district court in Phoenix. The government and Resolution Copper have asked the court to dismiss our case, but we have asked the court to let the case continue so we can prove that the destruction of Oak Flat is illegal. We are still waiting for the district court to rule. Whatever the outcome, we will continue using every legal avenue available to protect Oak Flat.
Censored News 2026
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