Case: Debraska v. Oneida Business Committee
1:20-cv-01321 | U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin
Filed Date: Aug. 27, 2020
Closed Date: Oct. 22, 2020
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Case Summary
Individual members of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin, including Oneida Nation 2020 primary election candidates, filed a suit on August 28, 2020, against the Oneida Business Committee (the Business Committee) and the Oneida Election Board (the Election Board). The candidates were running for positions on the Business Committee, an elected committee of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin, in the 2020 primary election. Claiming that it was not safe for poll workers amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, the Election Board canceled the primary, while maintaining the general election scheduled for 63 days later.
The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin and assigned to Judge William C. Griesbach, alleged that the cancelation of the 2020 primary election violated the plaintiffs' rights and was an arbitrary and self-serving measure by the defendants. Specifically, they alleged that the Election Board and the Business Committee violated their rights under the Oneida Constitution, the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the United States Constitution, and the Indian Civil Rights Act. The plaintiffs, representing themselves, sought declaratory, monetary, and injunctive relief, including the reinstatement of the 2020 primary election.
Along with their complaint, the plaintiffs filed a motion for a temporary restraining order on August 28, 2020, seeking the implementation of various election procedures, such as access to mail-in ballots. The motion also requested that the court prevent elected members of the Election Board and Business Committee from taking office in August 2020 until the conclusion of this suit. Judge Griesbach denied the plaintiffs’ motion for a temporary restraining order, finding that the suit was not likely to succeed on the merits.
The Election Board and the Business Committee then filed a motion to dismiss on September 24, 2020, to which the plaintiffs did not respond. On October 22, 2020, Judge Griesbach granted the motion to dismiss, noting that the plaintiff's failure to respond was sufficient grounds for dismissal. He nevertheless stipulated additional grounds for dismissal, including lack of federal jurisdiction due to the sovereignty of the Oneida Nation. This sovereignty effectively prevented the plaintiffs from recovering on United States constitutional grounds and barred them from establishing violations by state actors, as the Oneida Nation is neither a state nor a territory of the United States. Moreover, the sovereignty of the Oneida Nation precluded a United States District Court from deciding the basis of the claims based in the Oneida Constitution. Following Judge Griesbach's dismissal, the case is now closed. 2020 WL 6204320.
Summary Authors
Betsy Sheppard (3/28/2022)
People
For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/17521187/parties/debraska-v-oneida-business-committee/
Dallas, Nancy A (Wisconsin)
Dallas, Gladys D (Wisconsin)
Dallas, Linda S (Wisconsin)
Dallas, Nadine A (Wisconsin)
Debraska, Michael T (Wisconsin)
Documents in the Clearinghouse
Resources
Docket
See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/17521187/debraska-v-oneida-business-committee/
Last updated April 10, 2026, 5:08 a.m.
Case Details
State / Territory:
Case Type(s):
Special Collection(s):
Healthy Elections COVID litigation tracker
Key Dates
Filing Date: Aug. 27, 2020
Closing Date: Oct. 22, 2020
Case Ongoing: No
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
Individual members of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin including candidates in the 2020 Oneida primary election.
Plaintiff Type(s):
Public Interest Lawyer: No
Filed Pro Se: Yes
Class Action Sought: No
Class Action Outcome: Not sought
Defendants
Tribe
The Oneida Business Committee
The Oneida Election Board
Defendant Type(s):
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Ex parte Young (federal or state officials)
Constitutional Clause(s):
Due Process: Procedural Due Process
Other Dockets:
Eastern District of Wisconsin 1:20-cv-01321
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Defendant
Relief Granted:
Source of Relief:
Issues
Voting:
Case Summary of Debraska v. Oneida Business Committee, Civil Rights Litig. Clearinghouse, http://www.dev.clearinghouse.net/case/18066/ (last updated 3/28/2022).